ã€ŠForsaking Realityã€‹


 Chapter 1: The Test

    Most people who have had everything taken from them would become depressed, turning their aura as cold as ice; wanting to get away from life. Others might accept reality for what it is, accept the world for what it is,and choose to tread the fate given to them. Yet there are the strong who choose to accept reality yet choose to forsake that path; for the world is just a place to grow stronger so you can create your own reality.

    Purple Sky City in the Red Cloud Sect¡¯s training ground

    Xiun Wu dashed forward, an illusory cloud above his head, as he reached Akata in the blink of an eye. He lifted his fist up and punched out towards Akata¡¯s chest. His fist contained enough power to shake the air around it as it sped toward his opponent. Akata, almost having no time to think, immediately put his arms up to block the incoming strike.

    Boom!

    Akata was pushed back flopping across the ground like a rock skipping across water. Vomit spraying from his mouth as he was thrown back. After being thrown back a meter or two, he was in a sorry state, his face pale, but his eyes still burned with the desire to fight.

    "Good good!" The teacher, Master Chin signaled for the spar to stop as he called up the two students clapping hands. ¡°Xiun Wu your Seeping Cloud technique that you developed is truly superb. If you keep advancing in your training and improving this skill of yours it will truly become the number one defense.¡± Master Chin had nothing but praise for Xiun Wu as he spoke to him. Xiun Wu¡¯s smile was beaming across his face as he took it all in. Xiun Wu was the most talented of the younger disciples in the sect, how could he not be happy right now. In the future he would surely have a life of greatness.

    "That¡¯s enough sparring today, excellent work today.¡± Master Chin was indeed content with this student of his. It was then that he looked at the boy beside Xiun Wu and started to smile wryly. ¡°Akata you should train some more, it wouldn¡¯t hurt to ask for some assistance from Xiun Wu here, he is rather talented you know, so I¡¯m sure he could teach you a few things.¡± Master Chin let out a sigh as he finished speaking and shook his head slightly. Xiun Wu glanced at Akata with disdain and snorted inwardly not paying him any further attention.

    ¡°That¡¯s it for today¡¯s sparring lesson class, meditate on what you''ve learned and get some rest. I know that in the future you¡¯ll experience great fortune and wonders.¡± Master Chin looked at the twenty something students in his class as he let his voice ripple out sounding very much so like a powerful figure.

    ¡°Yes master Chin¡± The class clasped hands toward Master Chin and bowed slightly. Even though they all bowed toward him they all knew that he was mainly talking to Xiun Wu. Xiun Wu was a rather handsome 13 year old with blonde hair and blue eyes, he was also a prideful student, most of the time coming off as arrogant. He wore a blue robe that looked like it was made from the depths of the ocean. He was born into a successful merchant family so he was raised with money and the finest things. He knew he was a genius in the family and wasn''t going to let that go to waste.

    Master Chin nodded and then disappeared off into the distance.

    Xiun Wu looked toward Akata and then scoffed at him saying, ¡°Akata, you did well today, you actually lasted a few breaths longer than last time. Like Master Chin said, if you ever need some pointers I¡¯ll be more than happy to give some out.¡± Xiun Wu laughed coldly.

    ¡°Akata is just too weak he hasn¡¯t even broke through to begin training.¡± A handsome male disciple with a long dark green robe on joined in standing beside Xiun Wu.

    ¡°He won¡¯t ever break through to start cultivating, he has no future.¡± A young girl with dark blue hair and a white robe also laughed coldly and stood on the other side of Wu.

    ¡°Xiun Wu, Xi Fe, and Ming Xu there¡¯s no need to worry about me I appreciate your care for me though. As for when I break through it will eventually happen and when it does you all wouldn¡¯t be worth looking at. First I¡¯ll crush you and make you all my stepping stones to greatness.¡± Akata¡¯s eyes showed with a fierce light of determination and the will to fight.

    Akata was a 13 year old boy with modest features. His hair a spiky black while his eyes were a fiery crimson red. He wore a red robe that brought the essence of flames to life around him. His skinny figure made him look weak and frail. But he carried himself with determination and ambition.Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

    Xiun Wu and the rest of his group snorted, ¡°Trying to provoke us again? Just wait till the Red Cloud Sparring Day comes the day after the Body Spirit Exam takes place. If you have the gall to show up we¡¯ll fight there and have everyone as witnesses. I truly hope you improve in your cultivation, cause I find it hard to hold back my power.¡± Xiun Wu¡¯s eyes showed with a cold light and he laughed coldly.

    The Body Spirit Exam was a test held 2 times a year that students take at the Red Cloud Sect to show how strong a disciple is and the future potential they¡¯ll have. Being near the top meant the teachers will spend more time nurturing you, while being near the bottom meant you''ll be cast aside. The Body Spirit Exam tested ones Body Rank and Spirit Grade. Xiun Wu who scored number 1 in the youth division this time was a 4th Grade Mortal Ranker. Akata, being the worst, was just a Mortal.

    A higher rank means you have a stronger body. With a higher grade you have a stronger spirit. Demigod being the highest Rank and Mortal being the lowest Rank. For Grade, 9 is the highest while 1 is the lowest. Akata being at 0 meant he hasn¡¯t broken through to the Mortal Rank yet. Everyone knew he wasn''t going to get anywhere in life.

    In the Divine Crystal Continent there were 9 empires that governed the land. The Miscellaneous Empire was ranked number 9. Even though it was ranked at the bottom, it still had some strong cities. Unfortunately Purple Sky City was not one of them. Purple Sky City to most people was considered to be quite weak in terms of strength. Although not at the bottom, it definitely was not anywhere close to the top. In fact, the only reason it wasn''t at the bottom was because the other cities below it didn¡¯t have any sects or clans.

    Purple Sky City did contain one sect though which gave the people there a sense of pride. The Red Cloud Sect was a mysterious place that sprang up out of nowhere 1,000 years ago. Although it came out of nowhere and is even still shrouded in mystery, major powers paid it no mind because it didn¡¯t rise to power. In fact even the emperor at the time didn¡¯t pay it any mind. Even though many didn¡¯t care about it, some people in Purple Sky City wanted to find out more about it. Soon people began to join and after the passings of generations the people became accustomed to it.

    Red Cloud Sect

    Akata and the rest of the students started leaving. Akata headed to his dorm room.

    His room was simple. It had a single bed covered with a red sheet. The walls were made of gray wood while the floor was made of gray stone. The whole place looked as if rot was the only decoration available.

    Inside he immediately went to his bed and sat in the lotus position to start meditating. Trying to feel for his aura he sat for hours but couldn''t feel anything. Saddened he started to do his daily exercises to work his body. Since he couldn¡¯t cultivate yet he would train his body, that was how Akata was, he wouldn¡¯t just give up and do nothing.

    Magic is a skill that mostly all cultivators in these modern times train in and use in order to become strong and rise to the top. Eventually when training in magic the body would strengthen itself so cultivators didn¡¯t truly focus on it. Besides, in these modern times, magic is stronger than many kinds of body techniques currently available. To cultivators, Akata training his body was useless, he might as well not be doing anything at all.

    ¡°I¡¯m beat!¡± Akata jumped in bed ready to rest up. After half a day of doing simple exercises like running, push-ups, sit-ups, etc. he was truly tired. He fell straight to sleep.

    In the dream world

    ''Where am I? It''s so dark I can''t see around me. I can''t tell if I''m floating or standing.'' Akata''s eyes burst open and saw nothing but darkness.

    ''It''s cold in here. Yet I can''t tell cause I won''t be able to see my breath. Are my eyes even open? Wait what''s that faint dim light over there?'' Akata started moving towards the light he saw.

    As he got closer the air became much colder and dense, almost suffocating.

    ''Such great strength! Whose aura is this? It has to be on the level of a Grandmaster!''

    Akata, as he approached, could hardly move forward. Every step closer felt as if every bone in his body was being crushed under the enormous strength. But he felt like he had to find out the source of this God like aura!

    The light got brighter and brighter as he came closer, almost blinding him. He closed his eyes tight but still moved forward being crushed under the pressure. Suddenly he felt a blast push him back making him fall backwards. He opened his eyes to see what happened.

    A lady was sitting at a round table drinking what could be coffee or tea. She had long red hair that reached to her lower back and calm red eyes. Her elegant white dress showed off all her good features. Her plump chest protruding out but not so much to show off. And her fair skin as calm as a lake with no ripples.

    She turned her head to look at the boy and smiled. Akata couldn''t stop staring at her with his mouth wide open.

    "You there boy come here." She said in an angelic voice that had the power to bring heaven to the surface of the world.

    Akata stood there dazed not daring to move an inch. He couldn¡¯t sense any danger emanating from the lady in front of him, but the pressure she naturally produced made him feel as if he couldn¡¯t resist her command even if he wanted to. Even though he was lowest in rankings of all time he still had common sense. He walked up to the lady.

    She chuckled with how cautious he was being. "Don''t worry little one. I was tasked with delivering something to you. Although I¡¯m not sure if you can receive it." Her eyes twinkled as she looked into Akata''s.

    Akata just looked on not sure of what to do. In his mind he was thinking of ways he could escape, but when he looked the lady in the eyes he knew there wasn¡¯t a place far enough for him to flee to.

    She looked him up and down taking him all in as if trying to contemplate why this person was important. She put on a light smile and tilted her head slightly. Her arm lifted in the air and with it her hand pointed at Akata. Her smile opened to show snow white teeth underneath.

    A red glow appeared at her palm. Akata stood still mesmerized by the calm nature of it.

    She began to speak with her angelic voice. ¡°Think of this as a test. If you pass you¡¯ll be able to accept this great fortune. But if you fail¡­ you die.¡±

    Suddenly without warning it flew out of her palm aimed straight at Akata. Still captivated by the energy, he stood there.

    Swoosh!

 Chapter 2: Enduring To Live

    Akata¡¯s eyes snapped open as he awoke from the dream-like world he was in. As he woke he found himself in a dazed state as he looked around. Suddenly he felt a burning sensation in his chest. Immediately a sharp pain wracked his mind and coursed through his frail body. He grit his teeth to the point they were cracking and oozing blood from his gums. He let out a blood curdling scream as he experienced this heaven defying pain.

    The moon hung high in the night sky but was covered by the dark storm-like clouds making the scenery seem much more darker. There was no wind tonight, only the sound of crickets could be heard in the silence. But then the sound of a horrific scream could be heard breaking that peaceful silence. The sound of it started near the outer residences but then echoed throughout the whole sect.

    Eventually sect members that were close by were woken up by the horrific screaming that was being unleashed by Akata. Some were curious as to what was happening so they made their way over to his room, but they didn¡¯t get too close. Quite a few decided to keep their distance for fear that something horrible was going on. The rest of the disciples tried to pay the matter no mind as they continued on with their cultivating.

    ¡°AHHH!¡± Akata was still bearing the pain that wracked his whole body. He felt as if his skin was being lacerated one layer at a time, as if his bones were being crushed and reformed over and over again. The pain was immense but he didn¡¯t dare to give in to it. He knew that if he gave into the pain then his life would be over, coupled with the words of the mysterious lady, he didn¡¯t want to find out if it was true so he tried his best to endure.

    ¡°ARGH!¡±

    By now the sect¡¯s elders were arriving to assess the situation. When they saw what was happening their faces immediately fell. They had no idea what was going on with Akata. They could see the pain enveloping Akata, his veins bulging out of his body and even some that have already burst inside of his skin. Blood was oozing out of his mouth, ears, and nose. His eyes were bloodshot but still showed with a fierce glow of determination, it had the look of two moons during a lunar eclipse.

    ¡°Is it a type of poison?¡± Fourth Elder asked not sure of what to make of the situation. His eyes were glazed over and a flagon of wine could be seen in his grasp.

    ¡°What kind of poison could have effects such as this?¡± Said Sixth Elder.

    ¡°Who would poison him though? Isn¡¯t this our worst disciple? He has no future, there is no reason to assassinate him.¡± Fifth Elder questioned not sure about what could be happening.

    The elders were at a loss of what to do right now. Just as they were about to take him to the medicine hall to attempt to have him treated they heard a sigh. The sigh contained derisiveness and even a hint of disdain could be found within it.

    ¡°Seal the area. Nobody disturb him.¡±

    It was only six words but it caused the elders faces to change into one of astonishment. Nobody else could hear the words spoken by the voice, only the elders could. They were clear about who owned the voice and immediately went to work. They instantly sealed the area down and guarded the place making sure nobody got near. They even kept their own distance. They didn¡¯t dare to disobey the orders given to them just now.

    ¡°That was the Sect Leader.¡± Spoken by Fifth Elder.

    ¡°This must be serious for us to be given orders.¡± Fourth Elder immediately went to work setting up a barrier along with Fifth, Sixth, and Seventh Elder.

    ¡°Four Trigrams Cloud Seal!¡± The four Elder¡¯s called out in unison. A smoky cloud wafted up from the ground and covered the area, restricting any sort of access to Akata.

    With the area sealed down, the sounds of screaming ceased spreading. The disciples were ordered to return to their rooms. Of course what they heard kept them from going to sleep. They tried to ease their minds through meditating but even then some couldn¡¯t calm down. Conversations around the sect instantly rang up and spread out.

    ¡°That was Akata wasn¡¯t it?¡±

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    ¡°What could be going on with him, and why are the elders keeping it a secret?¡±

    ¡°What does it matter? It¡¯s not like he¡¯s that important anyways, the most he¡¯s known for is being useless.¡±

    Discussions and questions like these were heard everywhere across the sect and were spreading quite fast. Soon two hours past and the whole sect was in a buzz. Of course people such as Xiun Wu and his group didn¡¯t pay attention to any of it.

    Time seemed to last for eternity for Akata. His skin was filled with cracks that were spreading and falling off of his body. Sweat and blood covered his robe making it look as if he had just came out of a pool of blood. He was bleeding from all of the orifices on his face causing a bloody look to appear. He was seated in the lotus position with his hands on his knees trying to keep himself together and awake. He let out a scream that echoed out within the barrier, his aura weakening as time proceeded on.

    4 hours, 6 hours, 8 hours...

    The pain was so great that he couldn¡¯t even think to himself anymore. All he had was the willpower to keep enduring. He didn¡¯t know for how long the pain would last or if it would even go away. But he didn¡¯t care, all he wanted to do was keep on living. Nothing else mattered. He just had to pass this hell-like tribulation.

    9 hours, 10 hours, 11 hours...

    Soon half a day had passed and Akata still endured the pain that was increasing as the hours passed. The pain continued on for a full night. And he endured for a full night. When the morning rays of the sun started shining Akata could feel the pain gradually lessening. He was covered in blood and sweat. His teeth were all shattered, having fell out due to him clenching them so hard and for so long. All of his skin was shredded from his body. He looked like a demon that was the lone survivor of a great war. His eyes slowly opened to reveal that they were bloodshot and clouded but still showed with a resolute light. Although the pain was there it was much much easier to deal with. When it started lessening he felt like hell finally stopped tormenting him. His aura was still in a weak state but it had a different feel to it, almost like it came from a warrior.

    The four Elders were all sitting in formation keeping the barrier up to the seal the area. Each elder sat in one of the cardinal directions keeping guard of the area and maintaining the seal. They were waiting patiently to receive their next orders.

    ¡°Release the barrier. Bring him to me immediately.¡±

    The elders were meditating when they heard the calm derisive voice again. They opened their eyes simultaneously and each lifted a hand towards the barrier. The barrier started fading away with their movements. Soon a boy of 13 could be seen in the middle of the barrier, sitting cross-legged drenched in blood with no skin or teeth. His robes were dyed red and his aura seemed to contain a warrior¡¯s will.

    The boy they once thought to look frail and weak now looked completely different. He looked fierce as if he just came out of a grand war. Even though he looked haggard, his hair was disheveled, and his breathing came in rough gasps, his eyes showed determination. As if nothing could keep him from doing what he wanted.

    Fourth Elder instantly appeared in front of Akata. He waved his sleeve toward him and Akata disappeared. Next the elders all went toward the main sect building the Red Cloud Hall. They turned into beams of light as they rushed through the sect.

    Even though it took them a few breaths of time to release the barrier, gather Akata, and move off, some disciples caught sight of Akata sitting there.

    ¡°Did you see Akata?! He looked like a demon!¡±

    ¡°Yeah like he just came out of a war.¡±

    ¡°What happened in that barrier for him to look so poor?¡±

    Conversations like these sprang up everywhere and soon news spread of Akata. All the disciples were soon discussing the events that just happened.

    It must be known that even though the Red Cloud Sect has existed for a thousand years, it¡¯s not that strong or big. Only about a few hundred people were apart of the sect. In fact only about a thousand or so people lived in Purple Sky City. Let alone the sect, pretty much everybody knew each other in the city no matter what rank you had. Even the elders knew some of the ordinary people who lived throughout the city even though they were just regular mortals.

    As word was spreading of the great ordeal Akata went through, the elders arrived at Red Cloud Hall. This was the most grand building in the sect. Although it was grand it wasn¡¯t majestic in a royal sense or awe-inspiring. It stood three stories high. The walls were made of gray stone and the floors made of gray wood. The opposite of the rooms for the disciples. The door was made of a dark wood and looked imposing as if it didn¡¯t want you to pass through, then you had to turn around and give up going through.

    The Elders walked into the hall. The space inside was huge. When you walked in you were greeted with a red carpet that led to the throne. On either side of the carpet there were statues of people bowing in worship and reverence toward the throne. It made the Sect Leader who sat there look as if they controlled and stood on top of the world. Behind the throne could be seen the sect¡¯s symbol, it was a red cloud with a single bolt of black lightning coming out, but instead of the lightning aiming towards the ground it was heading in the air, as if it were attacking the heavens! It looked like the image of a bizarre thunderstorm that was placed upside down. The defiant symbol could be seen on the banner behind the hall¡¯s throne. This symbol was worn and torn as if it had met with war and battled to see victory.

    Fourth Elder walked toward the throne clasped hands and gave a respectful bow. The other Elders followed suit and did the same as Fourth Elder. They stayed bowed even as the Sect Leader spoke.

    ¡°Release him.¡±

    Fourth Elder swished his sleeve and Akata appeared in front of him still bloodied, skinless, and toothless. The pain wasn¡¯t completely gone so even as he was being moved he kept on enduring not daring to give up. He had closed his eyes again to focus more on enduring the pain. Even though his eyes were closed they still glowed with determination and did not falter for even a single breath. When Akata made his appearance in the hall he continued to meditate. He didn¡¯t even notice that he was carried away from his room and that he was in front of the Sect Leader.

    ¡°Leave.¡±

    It wasn¡¯t until then that the elders stopped bowing. Even Fourth Elder didn¡¯t stop bowing when he released Akata. They immediately turned to leave from the hall, after they left the building the dark hall door instantly closed up, causing a barrier to spring up around the building.

    The Sect Leader didn¡¯t do anything when they left. Just simply watched Akata as he endured the pain. The expressionless face of the Sect Leader made it so that reading it was pretty much useless.

 Chapter 3: Receiving Destiny

    A few more hours passed. The moon hung high in the sky now. The sparse clouds didn¡¯t obstruct the light shining from it. The wind was calm and collected as if consoling Red Cloud Sect and Purple Sky City. It was a cool peaceful night and everything was at ease.

    The sect disciples were all in their rooms. Though a day had passed it didn¡¯t mean the commotion had. People still talked about the events involving Akata. In fact, there were even more conversations about him now. The news about him even spread throughout the city.

    ¡°I heard Akata went through some horrific tribulation that he might not survive through.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s nothing I heard that he was the target of an assassination.¡±

    ¡°Oh yeah, Seventh Elder of the sect told a group of us that the Sect Leader is looking this matter over personally.¡±

    Word spread around quickly and soon everyone in the city knew about it. Even though it was a hot topic in Purple Sky City, the other neighboring cities didn¡¯t even bother turning their ears in the direction of the noise. Stuff like this was normal in the other cities where the strong resided. People there fight and kill all the time, it was like normal everyday life.

    It had been a full day since Akata had started enduring the pain of having his body mutilated from the inside out. His muscles had even eventually started tearing off of his body. With the pain finally about to dissipate Akata could finally come to his senses and he gradually opened his eyes. His eyes were bloodshot and all he could see for a moment was red, eventually it started clearing up and as he looked around he was at a loss of where he was. Even though the Red Cloud Hall was the main building in the sect, even the elders weren¡¯t allowed in unless they received permission, to say nothing of the regular disciples. It was the private residence of the Sect Leader and therefore people weren¡¯t allowed to come in and out as they saw fit.

    As he was looking around he suddenly noticed a figure sitting in a throne some distance away from him. Even though his eyes were still a bit blurry he was able to tell that the figure was looking right at him. He suddenly felt a sense of crisis as he didn¡¯t know what was going on. As he focused on the figure his eyes became wide with disbelief and astonishment, and then hatred. His brows furrowed and his mouth frowned.

    What he saw was a slim woman in a snow white robe almost like a dress that showed off her good features. She had striking red hair that reached to her lower back and red eyes to complement it. Her skin was as white as snow and made her look angelic. The natural aura she gave off was powerful and caused great pressure. She stared at him as if she didn¡¯t notice the hatred he was building up. She then tilted her head to the side and chuckled, showing her twinkling white teeth.

    Akata didn¡¯t seem to be fazed by her beauty in the slightest. His brows continued to be furrowed and his frown deepened. What he saw in front of him was the same lady from his dream.

    ¡°Don¡¯t be like that little one. I was just tasked with giving you that present. It¡¯s not like I did it on purpose.¡± The Sect Leader said with an angelic tone.

    Even though he knew that he was no match for this figure in front of him, his hatred still climbed with each passing breath. He went through that hell like pain and could¡¯ve died because of this person in front of him. If it wasn¡¯t for his heaven defying determination and will to go against death he most certainly would¡¯ve given up and perished in the first moments of the pain.

    ¡°Since you obviously harbor resentment towards me I guess it¡¯s no more fun trying to tease you.¡± She put on a pouting face that would make any man melt with lust if they were to look at it. But Akata was no man, he was only 13 and all he showed toward the lady was hatred.

    ¡°I am Sect Leader Fu. Since you have survived the test then I can let you accept the destiny that has been entrusted to you. You could only accept the destiny if you experience the pain of the first level of hell and endure it for a day. It tests your willpower and determination to live. Since you have passed then you can accept the destiny.¡± She looked on at Akata to see that his face still hadn¡¯t let up and that the hatred he had still hadn¡¯t disappeared. It actually caused one of her eyes to twitch a little. Obviously, she was getting annoyed with him as of now.Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

    Hearing the lady in front of him address herself as Sect Leader caused Akata¡¯s face to look confused for a moment, but then he remembered what she did and it changed back. Even though she was the Sect Leader, she rarely made her way out of the Red Sect Hall. Almost no disciples of the sect or even citizens of the city had even seen her, if they did they would think she was an outsider. Even though the disciples of the Red Cloud Sect knew they had a sect leader they never knew who it was. In turn they came to believe that First Elder was acting as the Sect Leader.

    She closed her eyes, cleared her throat, and began speaking again.

    ¡°The destiny can only be accepted by a certain bloodline from an ancient clan. And you have that blood flowing through you. My master has tasked me with awakening your bloodline to accept that destiny in you when I felt that you were ready.¡± She peeked open one eye to catch a glimpse at Akata¡¯s face to see that it still hadn¡¯t changed.

    The pressure in the room suddenly increased exponentially. Akata felt a profound sense of danger and his face quickly paled as he felt fear coursing through him. He blinked once and found that the lady was right in front of him stretching her hand out towards his chest. Akata instantly felt a deadly crisis approaching but there was nothing he could do. He couldn¡¯t resist in the slightest.

    ¡°Sigh¡±

    ¡°Fu¡¯er.¡±

    The hand that was approaching him suddenly stopped a hair away from touching his chest. Although he wasn¡¯t injured and the hand wasn¡¯t moving anymore the sense of danger didn¡¯t decrease in the slightest, in fact it kept increasing. The more it stayed there the more the sense of danger kept increasing as if the killing intent in the hand was building up.

    Akata looked up at the Sect Leader¡¯s face to see that her hair was flowing as if it was the flame of her life. Her eyes were cold and filled with killing intent yet her hand did not move forward in the slightest. Her face held different emotions on it like she was contemplating something. You could see frustration, resentment, and a hint of fear. Even though she stopped moving her eyes were still fixed on Akata, burning with killing intent.

    Her mouth moved yet Akata couldn¡¯t hear what she was saying. It kept moving like she was having a conversation with somebody yet Akata couldn¡¯t feel any other presence in the room and he didn¡¯t dare to move a bit. It was as if he was sealed off from the outside world.

    Finally, after what seemed like eternity went by, the Sect Leader¡¯s hand slowly receded. She took in a deep breath and blew it all out. Although she calmed herself down the pressure didn¡¯t ease up a bit. Her eyes still held a cold glint in them and her face showed a pout.

    Akata still stood there not daring to move a muscle. He was looking straight at her but then she vanished to reappear back in the throne. The whole thing happened in the time it takes to take a single breath. It was like a vision that occurred to him that showed him what she was capable of if he didn¡¯t fix his face.

    Sect Leader Fu sat there in her throne her face showing the unfair treatment she just went through. She was resting her head on her hand while she looked off to the left of the room. She then turned her head to look at Akata. Their eyes met for a breath of time, but then she looked away again.

    ¡°Now that your bloodline has awakened you can receive what is rightfully yours. Do try not to be killed too early before you complete your task. It truly would be a shame. Well, not that I care anyways. Your future will be rough but if you traverse it to the end then you¡¯ll have the power to change this reality with the turn of your hand.¡± Her face held indifference as she spoke these words.

    ¡°Se¡­ Sect Leader Fu? What is this bloodline that you say I possess?¡± Akata spoke these words in the kindest tone he could utter at the moment. He didn¡¯t dare to displease the person in front of him who had an explosive temper and could kill him with the touch of a hand.

    Sect Leader Fu¡¯s face flickered with a look of disdain at the question but she quickly covered it up. ¡°If I were to tell you and news spread that you possess it, do you think you¡¯ll have the power to face those who will come after you?¡± She said this with indifference and a mocking tone.

    Akata¡¯s face immediately paled at the words spoken by the sect leader. His lips quivered and his pupils constricted. He didn¡¯t have to ask what that meant, he obviously knew what she meant by those words. It was telling him that his bloodline was so special that people would do anything to get their hands on it. Which in turn means he would have to die. Akata gulped down some saliva that was gathering in his throat.

    ¡°But since you¡¯re looking for more information yet also don¡¯t want to die early I can tell you one thing. In today¡¯s modern times cultivators only focus on training their Spirit Energy, but a true cultivator doesn¡¯t just train their Spirit Energy but also their Body and Mental Energy. Spirit Energy represents our inner energy, in modern times people only train in this to gain a longer life. Although in turn it does make you stronger but in truth it is actually the weakest way to do so. The body is a physical product birthed from the universe. Since it came from the universe it naturally has the capability to affect the universe, which means the stronger the body the more you can affect your surroundings. Cultivating the body is the second of the strongest. And finally Mental Energy, it completes the trifecta of the universe and can affect the natural laws of the universe. This is the strongest of the three to cultivate in and also the hardest. But if you can reach the pinnacle in cultivating it then nothing can stand in your way, because you¡¯ll have control over the laws of the universe and the heavens.¡±

    It was then that she stopped speaking and gave a deep look at Akata and then sighed. Akata was sitting there contemplating what he just heard. Training the body was something he had heard about and semi practiced but it was said to be the weakest in terms of strength compared to training the spirit. Training the mind was something he hadn¡¯t even heard of before, but the sect leader just said it was able to control even the heavens.

    Sitting in her throne the Sect Leader closed her eyes. She lifted her hand where a crimson rune could be seen. She tossed it out toward Akata where it fused into his torn muscles. His body convulsed and before he lost consciousness the Sect Leader waved her sleeve and he saw a red glow overtake him. All of a sudden he was back in his room.

    He then passed out.

 Chapter 4: Akata Awakens

    It was evening in Purple Sky City and the people were still talking about the events in the Red Cloud Sect. By now, five days had passed by and the buzz was as lively as when it first started. Not much happened in this small town and when a big event occurred such as this, it made a huge uproar. Of course neighboring cities and empires didn¡¯t pay much of any attention to it.

    Red Cloud Sect Training Field

    The training field in the Red Cloud Sect was a place for disciples to spar against each other in order to improve their skills and prestige. It was a huge field in the shape of a square, on one side was the sect and the other side was a forest. The field was divided into smaller sections that contained areas for sparring. The sections on the edge were referred to as the outer section, most disciples sparred there as it didn¡¯t catch much attention. The next section was the inner section, this section had nine cabins in which the stronger disciples resided in. If you possessed a cabin then you were the master of that zone. In the very center of the field was a tower that overlooked the whole training area. The tower served two purposes, one was to watch over the training field, and the other¡­ was the home of the currently strongest disciple.

    The Red Cloud Sect didn¡¯t have ranks that were given to disciples. There were no inner, outer, or even conclave disciples of the sect, everyone was just a disciple. Even the elders didn¡¯t have ranks; there were no grand elders or a great elder. Nobody knew why that was but as such, the disciples from long ago, when the sect first started, came up with their own ranking system based on strength. The cabins were arranged in numbers from 2 to 10, the higher your strength the easier it is to raise your rank. Only by sparring and winning can you get a higher rank. Also there was no skipping ranks you had to move one rank at a time. Meaning, to get to rank 8 you had to first beat rank 10, then beat rank 9, and finally challenge rank 8 and win. It was a rule to ensure that only the strong resided in the cabins.

    Rank 1, however, had a different rule, and that was they could be challenged by any of the ranked people. That meant that a person who just got rank 10 and challenged the first rank and won¡­ then they would be the new first ranker! Of course it wasn¡¯t all bad for the first rank. If the first rank person felt that someone wasn¡¯t qualified to be in the ranks they could beat them and kick them out leaving the spot open to be contested over. This means that if the first ranked person beat the second ranked person then the second ranked person would be kicked out of the second rank. That person would then go to rank 10 and have to build their way up again. Causing everyone else to raise in one rank.

    All in all it was a system that showed who the powerful disciples of the sect were and made it clear to everyone.

    In the third cabin

    The cabin was made of logs and looked very rural from the outside. The land around it was clear and the grass was green with life. It was a calm residence and was actually majestic compared to the rest of the disciples rooms that were gray in color. At the back of the cabin was a garden that held many plants of different varieties. In the front of the cabin was a wide open area around two hundred meters wide that was covered in clay tiles, this was the personal sparring arena for the cabin.

    Inside the cabin was a simple bed and a table that seated four. Currently, three people sat at the table conversing. One boy looked on as the other two talked on. He had blonde hair and blue eyes. He also wore a blue robe that made him seem like a raindrop. He was none other than Xiun Wu. The other two were obviously Xi Fe and Ming Xu.

    ¡°I heard that Akata is actually recovering from his injuries and nobody is allowed to go near him.¡± Ming Xu said with her calm voice soothing to the ear.

    ¡°Yeah, the elders told everyone in the sect to keep their distance from him. It¡¯s like something big is going on with him.¡± Xi Fe replied.

    It was then that Xiun Wu opened his eyes and spoke. ¡°I want to find out what¡¯s going on as soon as possible. If it¡¯s a threat to my power then I want it stopped immediately. Find out as much as you can and report back to me. We¡¯ll come up with a strategy once we¡¯ve collected all the information we can.¡± He spoke with a calm voice that when heard was backed by the power of an authority that could not be disobeyed. After he finished speaking he closed his eyes again and went back to meditating.

    Xi Fe and Ming Xu exchanged glances after hearing Xiun Wu¡¯s words and stood up to begin to walk out the door. Before they could walk out they heard Xiun Wu speak up again. You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

    ¡°If you¡¯re able to get close send him a message from me...¡±

    The two exchanged glances once more and could see the cold smiles plastered on each other¡¯s faces. They walked out the door and sped off into the distance towards Akata¡¯s direction.

    Akata¡¯s Room

    It was dark and cold. Akata found himself in another dream-like state where he couldn¡¯t see much as it was pitch black. He looked around but still couldn¡¯t see anything. He didn¡¯t know what else to do so he just walked forward. It felt like he was walking for days before he saw a ray of light. When he saw it he stopped and gaped for a moment. The light was red and emitted a powerful pressure that weighed down on everything. A pressure much more powerful than when Sect Leader Fu released her killing intent on him. The pressure was enormous yet it didn¡¯t affect him at all, he knew the pressure was there and how much of it there was yet it didn¡¯t phase him in the slightest.

    The pressure that came from the light wasn¡¯t the only things that made him stop and gape, the feeling of ownership made him feel a calling from the light. It was as if the light wanted to be with him again after years of being away for so long. The feeling made Akata instinctively stop but then almost right after head toward the light. He felt a sense of belonging from the light and that if he went towards it he would be complete. It felt warm like extra blood was coursing through him.

    As he approached the light he became more warm inside like he was bathing in the sunlight.The intense pressure increased exponentially with each step he took, but he eased his way through as if strolling through his own garden. When he started to walk towards the light he saw that there was an object inside of it, though he was unsure about what it was. The closer he got to the light the more clearer the object became, eventually he was able to make out a symbol but he wasn¡¯t clear on what it meant. He was getting closer to the light with each movement.

    He was now only about 3 steps away from the light. It let out pulsing glows with each step Akata took. Soon Akata was in front of the light, though now it looked more like a bright object. ¡°This symbol is weird, it actually looks like a rune but what magic could it be? And why is it resonating with me? Am I connected to it somehow?¡± Akata mused to himself as he stood in front of the bright red rune. The feeling of connection was greater than ever and Akata didn¡¯t even notice as his hand unconsciously moved to touch the rune.

    The rune flashed with different shades of red. Crimson, scarlet, cardinal, etc. All the shades of red flashed by in an instant and then the rune expanded to the size of Akata¡¯s body and passed through him like a laser gate scanning over him. The scanning went by slow but Akata didn¡¯t notice. As the rune was passing over him very slowly visions were being transmitted to him.

    He saw a gryphon in the middle of a clear field staring up into the night starry sky looking deeply at a meteor shower. The gryphon had the body of a lion looking like a sovereign of the lands, the wings and face of an eagle showing its pride and authority to rule the skies above, and the tail of a snake making sure anyone behind it would know it was not to be trifled with.

    It was taking in the scene and observing this celestial event. All of a sudden it flew up into the air heading straight towards a meteor that was coming towards its direction. The meteor was absurdly massive, it was the same size as the planet the gryphon was on! It looked unparalleled as if it could crush the worlds beneath it, shatter the heavens above it, and annihilate any universe it was passing through.

    The gryphon let out the roar of a lion, the screech of an eagle, and the hiss of a snake as it brandished a single claw toward the humongous meteor. It was only a single claw and compared to the size of the meteor it couldn¡¯t even be counted as a speck of dust. The gryphon approached the meteor with a blazingly fast speed that couldn¡¯t be comprehended. It made its way in front of the meteor where it¡­ tapped it.

    It was only a single tap but it caused the meteor to stop in place and then suddenly... move in the opposite direction at an inconceivably fast speed! That wasn¡¯t all there was to it because after that cracks spread throughout it and it exploded into rubble! If that was all, it could still be counted as amazing, but what happened next was completely illogical. The rubble continued to break down until it became dust and then gathered together in front of the gryphon where it¡­ turned into the moon!

    Akata was completely dumbfounded. All that just happened was beyond his realm of comprehension. In fact it was actually way too much that his true body started to bleed out of his mouth. The vision started to grow blurry after the moon was formed but then another utterly astonishing thing happened. The gryphon started to change and resemble a human more. The snake tail was receding, the wings were vanishing, the fur and feathers were becoming skin-like, and the head was losing its beak. Soon the face could be seen and what Akata saw caused himself to wake up and spit up a mouthful of blood, his mind racing with absurdness. That was because he saw himself!

    When Akata awoke he saw a red glow on him. On further inspection he saw that it was coming from his heart and that the glow actually looked like a rune. It was the same rune he just saw in his dream. The rune pulsed with light every time his heart beat, as if it was replacing the job of the heart to distribute blood. But what Akata felt wasn¡¯t the rune distributing his blood, he felt it purifying it making it stronger.

    He thought back to the vision of the gryphon and it destroying the meteor to create the moon, then when it changed into him. When he thought about it he felt his blood surge with power, power he had never before experienced. When Akata felt this power his eyes gleamed with determination.

    ¡°I will become stronger! Strong enough so that I can make that vision a reality!¡± His eyes gleamed with a fighting will and his purified blood coursed through his veins.

    ¡°Hmm? Someone¡¯s coming here at a fast speed. Wait no¡­ it¡¯s two people. Wait this rune allows me to sense my surroundings?! That¡¯s something only the true number 1 disciple and elders can do!¡± As Akata was thinking about the rune his mind went back to the two approaching figures, where a smile could be seen forming on his face.

    ¡°Well it seems they¡¯ve come with orders from Xiun Wu. So I might as well accept his gift in giving me training dummies.¡± A bashful smile could be seen on Akata¡¯s face as he quickly donned a new red robe and headed out of the building.

 Chapter 5: Unexpected Developments

    Xi Fe and Ming Xu were approaching Akata at top speed. Just as they caught sight of the barrier surrounding his room, it vanished. They had frowns on when they saw it and were about to discuss ways to get past it when it dispersed. At first they were confused but then sent that to the back of their minds as they headed to Akata¡¯s direction.

    They didn¡¯t have to go far as when they got close they saw Akata standing there. When they saw him they immediately thought that there was something very strange and different about him. His black spiky hair that reached to the back of his neck swayed in the wind. His red robe fluttering as if it was the flame of his life that was swaying. And his fierce red eyes showed with a fighting will that couldn¡¯t be extinguished by anyone.

    Akata pushed his urge to fight to the side and put on a genuine smile to replace it. He put a hand in the air and waved it towards the two. ¡°Yoo! Long time no see elder brother Fe and elder sister Xu, what brings you two over here in a hurry.¡±

    The two stopped running when they saw Akata greeting them in such a casual manner. Their suspicions immediately grew higher. At first they thought that Xiun Wu was being a bit excessive with his request, as Akata was severely injured and also very weak. Nothing he did could put him as a threat to Xiun Wu, but since they followed him they did what he said anyways to clear his doubts. They thought that with the both of them then no matter how strong Akata might have became he wouldn¡¯t be a match for them. But then they saw his confidence even when seeing both of them arrive. Not only that, but it looked like he knew they were coming, as if he was able to sense his surroundings, something only Elders were capable of doing.

    The two glanced at each other and tried to dispel any such thoughts. They looked toward Akata and then scoffed.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know how you knew we were coming but it doesn¡¯t matter. Since you know that we were coming, you must also know why we¡¯re here so how about you just give us your arm so that we don¡¯t have to take it.¡± Xi Fe spoke this in a cold voice. He was only around 17 years of age but his voice was cold enough to have some adults tremble with fear.

    Akata looked indifferently towards Xi Fe and said, ¡°I don¡¯t feel like it, how about another time after I get some rest then I¡¯ll play.¡± Akata stretched his arms and faked a yawn.

    Xi Fe¡¯s face grew dark and he was about to yell out when Ming Xu cut him off. ¡°Akata it seems you¡¯ve changed some, maybe you found some good fortune. How about you share all of it with us and we can put this behind us. We might even put a good word in with Xiun Wu.¡± Ming Xu tilted her head and spoke in an angelic voice that carried a hint of coldness. She spoke the word ¡°all¡± with emphasis directly implying that if he didn¡¯t agree there would be repercussions.

    Akata frowned at the words of Ming Xu, her words weren¡¯t any better than Xi Fe¡¯s. He wasn¡¯t the type to be bullied and not retort back. Even when he felt weaker he would fight back, although he would lose in the end.

    Seeing that he wasn¡¯t replying Xi Fe lost all patience and started walking toward Akata. Ming Xu did nothing to stop him this time, her eyes glowing with an equally cold light.

    It was then that a flash of light passed through between Akata and Xi Fe. Xi Fe instantly stopped and Akata was shaken, he didn¡¯t sense this person approaching even though he was constantly surveying his surroundings. Xi Fe¡¯s and Ming Xu¡¯s faces were unsightly as they saw the figure stop between them and Akata.

    She was a young woman of about 20 and wore a silver robe that glittered in the wind. Her hair was pitch black and her eyes were equally dark as well. Her snow white skin shined brightly and her figure was smooth and round. She looked like a celestial being.

    ¡°Oh? It seems that I still can¡¯t control floating yet. My apologizes junior brother Fe and Little Xu Xu, did I disturb you? It seems that learning to fly is quite the challenge indeed. Tehehe.¡± Her voice was pleasant to listen to but to Xi Fe and Ming Xu it was dreadful. Their faces became dark and unsightly.

    ¡°Ming Lu what is the meaning of this?!¡± It wasn¡¯t Xi Fe who asked this but Ming Xu, her voice containing coldness and jealousy.

    ¡°Ah Little Xu Xu how¡¯s it been? Is your training going well? You should really spend more time focusing on that instead of chasing after boys.¡± Ming Lu spoke with kind soft words that didn¡¯t contain a hint of malice. She spoke with sincerity and love towards her younger sister.

    ¡°Cut the crap! Why are you interfering with our work?! It¡¯s none of your concern so get lost will ya!¡± Xi Fe had lost his temper long ago and didn¡¯t even think as the words came out of his mouth.

    Ming Lu¡¯s face instantly darkened and a cold gleam could be seen flashing across her eyes. She took a step forward and was in front of Xi Fe in the blink of an eye. She lifted her palm to reveal a white rune she drew and casted it towards him. The rune transformed into a snowflake where it started increasing in numbers. If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.

    1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, 64¡­

    The number of flakes kept doubling until the area around Xi Fe looked like a blizzard was upon him. The snowflakes were sharp and cut his skin when they made contact, soon he was covered in cuts and was bleeding all over. The blood merged with the snowflakes seemingly making them stronger and able to cut him further and deeper. Xi Fe was howling with pain causing a crowd of disciples nearby to rush over and see what was going on.

    ¡°Is that Demoness Lu?! The disciple ranked number 2 in the entire sect?!¡±

    ¡°Her Blood Snow Tempest still looks to be the most fierce technique in the sect.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve never seen it before, what is it?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s a technique she created after gaining enlightenment from almost dying in a blizzard. Some say that she was attacked by a strong beast and when her blood mixed in with the snow she created a strong technique that was able to kill it. She then used the beast¡¯s body to nourish her own giving her a beast¡¯s strength on top of her own. Making her that much stronger!¡±

    Cries of astonishments and discussions like these rang up everywhere around the battle going on right now. Instead of a battle though it would be more accurate to say a one-sided brawl.

    Ming Lu saw the crowd but didn¡¯t decrease her attack in the slightest. That was her personality, if something upset her she would fix it until it no longer did. Since Xi Fe upset her she wasn¡¯t going to let a few measly onlookers stop her. It¡¯s not like she was going to kill him, she had her boundaries and knew when to stop, otherwise she wouldn¡¯t have gotten the power she had now.

    By now all of the snowflakes were bloody and swirling around Xi Fe like a tempest not letting him out and causing increasing damage to him. Akata looked on with wide eyes, this was a kind of power he had never seen before and ruthlessness to match. ¡°If I can follow her example then maybe I can become that strong too. Maybe I can even face her head on in the future.¡± At the thought of this Akata¡¯s eyes gleamed with the desire to fight, and his fighting will almost burst out.

    Ming Xu was pale faced and her eyes bulged outwards. The sight of seeing her partner being mutilated right in front of her left her dumbstruck. Especially since it was her own older sister performing the mutilation. She suddenly came back to her thoughts,gritted her teeth and yelled, ¡°ELDER SISTER STOP RIGHT NOW!!!¡± Her voice was no longer angelic but contained a mix of emotion such as hatred, helplessness, and fear.

    The Blood Snow Tempest shook a bit and then started to disperse bit by bit, leaving the area it was located in for all to see. On the ground could be seen Xi Fe, covered in wounds and lacerations, making his appearance hard to recognize. In fact if the people didn¡¯t know who was in the tempest in the first place they wouldn¡¯t recognize him at all. Blood surrounded the area making the place seem like a small scale war zone. The flowers, grass, and dirt were all stained red from his blood being showered upon them. He lay there gasping for air on the verge of becoming unconscious.

    Ming Lu still had a cold look in her eye as she stared at Xi Fe laying on the ground. She snorted coldly, ¡°A measly Grade 3 disciple dares to speak to me that way and can¡¯t even defend against my [Blood Snow Tempest] for a few breaths of time.¡± She turned her head not paying any further attention to him, and instead looked at her sister, Ming Xu, where she gave a slight smile. The coldness and pressure she emitted went away almost instantly as if it was like nothing ever even happened.

    Ming Xu gave an inward sigh of relief, although she knew her sister wouldn¡¯t kill Xi Fe, she didn¡¯t want him to get too badly hurt. Because if it continued she knew her sister would tear his cultivation foundation up. She didn¡¯t let any of this show on her face though. Because Ming Lu hated weakness, if she saw the look of relief on Ming Xu¡¯s face, then she would continue on attacking Xi Fe relentlessly.

    ¡°Yo Little Xu Xu as I was saying before I was interrupted by some insect moments ago, you should focus on cultivating more. You¡¯re still always welcome to come study under me. Even though you¡¯re ranked 8 in the sect you¡¯re still far too weak. Just look what I did with the boy ranked 6 in the sect. He couldn¡¯t even stand up to my attack for 2 breaths of time before wailing out and collapsing on the ground.¡± Even though Ming Lu was ridiculing Xi Fe in the most open and direct way possible she spoke with love and care because she truly wanted the best for her sister.

    ¡°Absolutely not! I¡¯ll become stronger than you on my own and eventually end up beating you in battle with my own strength.¡± Ming Xu gritted her teeth and said no further words to her sister. She went towards Xi Fe picked him up and looked menacingly at Ming Lu, then toward Akata with a coldness that could freeze fire. After that she sped off in the distance toward the medicine hall.

    ¡°Sigh¡­ Shoot yourself then Little Xu Xu.¡± Ming Lu closed her eyes and shook her head. She then turned to look towards Akata, her face not revealing any of her thoughts as she looked at him. She looked at him for about 3 breaths of time before she started saying something.

    ¡°I can see potential in you. Right now you have strength but not so much as to handle the top 3 disciples of the sect. You might be able to be ranked fourth in the sect but definitely not higher as of now. But I admire strong opponents and if you can turn into one, all the better for my training. I have an ability I gained from the sect that allows me to see some of your future potential and when I saw yours I immediately rushed over here. All the top 3 disciples have this ability so we were aware of you. Xiun Wu ranked third sent my sister and that insect over to test you, and I just wanted to see you for myself. Seeing your potential it wouldn¡¯t be wise to show your power around so I have a bit of a deal for you. Allow me to personally observe you and if you accept then I¡¯ll let you train under me, how about it? Not bad, right?¡±

    Akata¡¯s mouth gaped opened and his eyes went wide. He wasn¡¯t the only one, everyone who heard the words of Ming Lu were astonished to the extreme. A chance to train under the second ranked disciple of the sect, and not only that but the extremely beautiful Ming Lu! It was like killing two birds with one stone. Some people became extremely envious, some felt depressed, and others enraged.

    ¡°How could Demoness Ming Lu even look at the weakest disciple in the sect? Let alone ask if he wants to learn under her?!¡± Roared one disciple.

    ¡°The things I would do to be in Akata¡¯s spot right now!¡±

    ¡°That should be Demoness Ming Lu asking me that!!¡±

    Outbursts like this were heard everywhere as soon as Ming Lu finished her words. The crowd had a mix of emotions going on. But they all had one thing in common. They wanted to be in Akata¡¯s place right now.

    Akata looked at Ming Lu with a deep look on his face. He was thinking of the consequences whether good or bad that would come out if he accepted. Ming Lu looked at Akata as he was in deep thought and she chuckled. She cleared her throat and then said, ¡°If you train under me then you¡¯ll have the strength needed to beat Xiun Wu without even having to lift a leg.¡± She especially emphasized the name Xiun Wu towards Akata.

    When Akata heard Ming Lu say this his mind instantly went spinning and the thought of fighting him made his blood rush through his veins and the red rune in his heart to pulse.

    He clapped his hands together and bowed deeply. ¡°Student Kaminari Akata greets Master Lu.¡±

 Chapter 6: Undergoing Training

    The crowd went into an uproar that escalated and spread out quickly. People sent messages to other fellow disciples about the events that just transpired. Soon everyone in the sect would know what just occurred.

    Ming Lu smiled at the bowing Akata and signalled for him to stand tall. She knew her last sentence was going to draw him in to train under her. It wasn¡¯t like she watched Akata all this time and knew how he acted, she just knew the actions of Xiun Wu the third ranked disciple of the sect, and knew that the two of them had some history. When she was on her way to the scene earlier she sensed the fighting urge emanating from Akata, so she took a gamble and put those two pieces together and coaxed him into accepting.

    She didn¡¯t wait for the crowd to disperse or for Akata to fully straighten up, she instantly rushed over to grab him by the arm and sped off toward her cabin. Even though the crowd was shocked and some were against what was happening, they didn¡¯t dare to slander Ming Lu, especially after what happened to the sixth rank disciple.

    Ming Lu stood on a snowflake that was about two meters wide as she flew through the skies. Although technically she was ¡°flying¡± it wasn¡¯t true flight, more like an extended version of a glide. Akata stood next to her looking around at the sect from up in the air as they sped through towards the training field.

    ¡°So this is what flying is like?¡± He asked Ming Lu with anticipation to reach this level.

    ¡°No this is not flying.¡± Ming Lu shook her head and let out a sigh. Her face was calm as she explained things to Akata. ¡°Anybody who trains in the Realm of Mortals and is in Mortal Rank can¡¯t fly no matter what. It doesn¡¯t matter what tool or skill you have because in the Mortal Rank the person can¡¯t alter enough natural energy to achieve flight. But when you break the bonds of a mortal and step into the Earthly Rank then you can achieve true flight. The only one¡¯s in the sect who can truly fly are the top three elders, even the other 6 elders can¡¯t truly fly.¡±

    Ming Lu explained things slowly and thoroughly to Akata to make sure he comprehended what she was saying. It was as if she really did care that he was training under her. Soon they reached her cabin.

    Second Cabin

    This cabin occupied a huge area and was beautiful to the extreme. There was lush greeneries everywhere. The cabin was wooden and stood two stories tall. Behind the cabin was a garden full of snowdrops making it look like the garden was stuck in a time of winter and snow covered the area. In the front yard there stood trees in two rows apart from each other that towered over the area creating a peaceful shady walkway to the front of the cabin. In the middle of that walkway was a sparring arena that was fully 300 meters wide.

    Ming Lu dropped Akata off in the arena and told him to wait there. Then she sped off towards her cabin. It must be said that even though cabins are taken away all the time, the top 3 disciples were in a league of their own and didn¡¯t have to worry about getting their cabin taken. So in the end they pretty much settled down and made it their permanent home. They weren¡¯t even scared to lose their cabin from the person one rank behind them because the gaps in strength was large enough that the other person didn¡¯t even challenge.

    Akata stood off to the side taking in the beautiful scenery and thought to himself that if he grew stronger he could have something like this. About an hour or so later Ming Lu returned, she was wearing a different set of clothes which was a skin tight bodysuit. The sight of it even caused Akata¡¯s face to slightly flush and make him flustered. Ming Lu landed in front of him and began talking.

    ¡°So this is how training is going to go down so listen up.¡± Ming Lu instantly started talking about training and Akata cleared his mind of any distracting thoughts to listen up. As he listened his blood pumped purer than ever and his eyes showed with a radiance of the will to fight. As Ming Lu was talking she took note of these things and continued.

    ¡°I want you go inside the Misty Forest and kill a grade 1 beast and bring it back here. After that I want you to absorb the blood of the beast and take it in as your own. Once you¡¯ve absorbed the blood then I want you to go back in the forest and meditate on your surroundings until you become one with your environment. You¡¯ll continue to do this for as long as I say and at the end when you complete the final task you¡¯ll spar with me.¡±

    Akata¡¯s mind was blank and his eyes looked like they were staring at nothing but a white wall in front of him. That was because this training was absurd! Misty Forest was on the other side of the training field and was an extremely dangerous place¡­ because beasts lived there. Beasts were incredibly powerful, much more so than the average mortal cultivator. A grade 1 beast was equal to a grade 2 mortal. Just the first task in his training was difficult not to mention the others. And he had to do this everyday!This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.

    Ming Lu continued to speak as if she expected this kind of reaction from Akata. ¡°Of course killing a beast will be rather difficult so I won¡¯t send you out just yet I have to make sure you¡¯re knowledgeable first. But that doesn¡¯t mean I¡¯m teaching you how to fight, that¡¯s up for you to do yourself. I¡¯ll also go over the best way to absorb beast¡¯s blood so that you won¡¯t end up crippling your cultivation base or worse, dying. You¡¯ll have to practice meditating on your surroundings on your own as I can¡¯t teach that. And the spar with me, that is also something you¡¯ll deal with yourself.¡± It was then that she finished speaking and looked over at Akata to see his response.

    What she expected to see was fear and nervousness on Akata¡¯s face, yet that wasn¡¯t visible at all on him. His eyes burned with a passion to get stronger and his body brimmed with the aura of a warrior. His fists were clenched tight and he looked eager to get started as soon as possible.

    Ming Lu unconsciously gave a nod of approval, the intense passion to get stronger coming from Akata gave her an even better impression of him. She tilted her head to the side and gave a slight smile, ¡°Well then let¡¯s get started, we have a few months until the Body Spirit Exam comes up and I want to have you ready for it.¡± Akata seemed to have influence her own passion as it too burned with eagerness.

    After the introduction of the training regimen, Ming Lu went straight away into explaining beasts to Akata. ¡°Just like mortals cultivate in their own realm, beasts can cultivate in theirs. Us mortals cultivate in the Realm of Mortals while creatures and the like cultivate in the Realm of Beasts. It is a known fact that beasts are inherently stronger than us, because of that people have found ways to make themselves stronger. One of those ways is to absorb the blood of the beast, making it our own and boosting our strength. This process is very difficult and a slip-up means that you can cripple your foundation or even kill yourself. I¡¯ll go over it more clearly when you have killed your first beast and brought it here.¡±

    Akata was taking in all the information making sure not to miss any single bit of it. He was going to use this opportunity to get stronger and wasn¡¯t going to let it go to waste by messing up.

    Ming Lu continued to talk, ¡°For your first beast I want you to kill a Blood Rabbit. They are the easiest to kill as they don¡¯t truly fight back, but they are fast when it comes to fleeing. Be careful out there and try not to be killed.¡±

    Ming Lu spoke her last sentence extra cheerfully as she waved Akata off to go into Misty Forest. As he was walking away towards the forest she gave a slight chuckle and blew a kiss in the air towards him. Akata didn¡¯t know she did that but he still felt a chill all of a sudden and shivered. He didn¡¯t want to look back so he increased his speed further. Soon he was at the edge of the training field, where he looked on at the trees that became the forest. He took a deep breath and entered.

    As he was walking through he thought to himself, how he felt much more different. Although nothing physical changed about him he felt like the red rune inside of him caused him to undergo mental and emotional changes.

    Misty Forest

    Everywhere you looked there was a low thin white mist covering the whole place. If you could see the grass in the area you would be shocked to see that it was purple and not green, even some of the tree leaves held a hint of purple in them. The trees were about fifty meters tall and blocked most of the sunlight in the area. The absence of light coupled with the fact that mist rose everywhere made an eerie scene for most people, enough for them to turn back. This is not even mentioning the beasts that lurk in the forest.

    Akata ran through the forest glancing around him to make sure no strong animals were around. He spread his senses out to scan his surroundings, but after his initial encounter with Ming Lu and finding out his senses didn¡¯t notice her, he didn¡¯t solely rely on them. He was on the lookout for a blood rabbit, so that he could absorb it¡¯s blood. This was his first time in Misty Forest so he wanted to be cautious, but at the same time he was eager to test his strength.

    As he sped along, out the corner of his eye he saw a small red object. Akata stopped in place and stood there not trying to make any sort of movement or sound. Upon closer inspection the object became more clearer to him.

    ¡°Ah that¡¯s a blood rabbit! What luck I have!¡± Akata mused to himself excitedly. ¡°If I can kill this animal and bring it back then I can absorb its blood and make it my own.¡± Akata nearly bursted out laughing at the thought of how easy he was having it. ¡°Now to just get closer. If only I knew some archery skills then this would¡¯ve been a piece of cake.¡±

    He crept up to the blood rabbit slowly so he wouldn¡¯t disturb it and have it run off, forcing him to chase it. The closer he got the more nervous he felt, he even took a gulp of saliva that was building up. He was only a little further away from it. With each step he moved slower and slower.

    Thirty steps, twenty steps, ten steps¡­

    Now he was about a meter away from the blood rabbit, and he was behind a bush. He only needed a few more steps and he would have it. He reached into his bag and pulled out a knife and held it in his hand firmly. He took one step forward then¡­

    CRACK!!

    Akata¡¯s face instantly dropped. He looked down to see a broken twig under his foot, it looked to be snapped cleanly in half. ¡°Poop! I had to step on a twig and ruin this chance! No! I can still do this, I just have to kill it before it goes too far.¡± Thinking up to here Akata immediately jumped from behind the bush he was hiding in and pounced towards the blood rabbit. What shocked Akata was that the blood rabbit wasn¡¯t moving out of the way or made attempts to even flee.

    The blood rabbit heard the twig snap and looked over. Then it saw Akata jump from behind the bush and pounce towards it. At this point of time it sniffed the air and its eyes went bloodshot. When Akata saw that the blood rabbit wasn¡¯t running away he grew suspicious but didn¡¯t slow his speed down. Then he saw the rabbit sniff the air in his direction and he unconsciously slowed a bit. When the rabbit was done sniffing and its eyes turned bloodshot, Akata¡¯s mind instantly filled with a sense of danger. He stopped instantly, turned around, and sped off in the opposite direction all in one swoop. The rabbit then started hopping towards Akata with an insane speed.

    ¡°What the hell kind of rabbit is this?! What kind of a rabbit chases down somebody with bloodshot eyes as if it was taking on a predator roll.¡± Akata increased his speed when he noticed how fast the rabbit was moving. In the blink of an eye the hunter, became the hunted.

 Chapter 7: Paragons Blood

    Akata ran and ran without decreasing his speed in the least. But he was soon getting tired and knew that he couldn¡¯t keep it up. What upset him more was that the blood rabbit still chasing him didn¡¯t decrease its speed either and in fact didn¡¯t look the least bit fatigued. They have been running non-stop for about an hour now and Akata couldn¡¯t hold out any longer. He knew that if he couldn¡¯t outrun the blood rabbit he might as well face it now instead of facing it when he was dead tired.

    Akata quickly jumped up a tree and climbed up a branch to turn around and face the oncoming blood rabbit. The blood rabbit saw Akata stopping so it too slowed down and came to a halt, looking at Akata with bloodthirsty eyes. Akata closed his eyes and took a deep breath and slowly let it out. When his eyes opened they showed with the will to fight, his red rune started rotating slowly and his blood became purer.

    ¡°Why am I running away from a fight? If I don¡¯t fight a measly little rabbit now, then how can I fight tougher opponents in the future. If that¡¯s the case then if I don¡¯t kill this blood rabbit then I might as well quit being a cultivator and give up on being strong.¡±

    As he was thinking to himself he launched himself forward in the direction of the blood rabbit. He held his knife out in front of him and stabbed it outwards, aiming at the blood rabbits throat.

    ¡°But I don¡¯t want to give all this up! If I don¡¯t become strong and be able to stand over everyone then I might as well die!¡±

    Akata swished past the blood rabbit who just stood there as if astonished by Akata¡¯s sudden burst of resolve to fight. In the last second though it hopped to the side barely able to escape with a gash on its fur. Akata held the bloody blade in his hand and looked at it, his eyes burning fiercely. He pointed the blade towards the blood rabbit even while blood still dripped off if it and stated, ¡°I hereby vow that if I ever run from another fight in the future I will mortally wound myself and have to rely on my own strength to recover from it, and that¡¯s if I do!¡±

    The blood rabbit seemed to understand Akata¡¯s words because it shuddered and inched back just a tiny bit. Then its eyes became bloodshot again and it pounced towards Akata, showing its fangs. Akata charged towards the blood rabbit, blade in hand. The blood rabbit managed to bite off a bit of skin from Akata leaving him dripping blood. Akata managed to slice off an ear from the rabbit. The two seemed to be evenly matched.

    As they faced each other again, Akata¡¯s face suddenly changed as he saw the blood rabbit doing something completely unexpected¡­ absorbing his blood. The blood rabbit took the blood of Akata that was splattered everywhere from when it bit him and congealed it all together. Then it compressed the blood making it more dense and powerful then it absorbed it through its chest where its heart was. The whole process made Akata look astounded, but what made him fearful was what happened next. The blood rabbit absorbed the blood and it looked like its fur was becoming a deeper red, it grew in size to reach Akata¡¯s waist, and its teeth became a bit longer and sharper. Akata could also sense the blood rabbit¡¯s strength growing. From that bit of blood he lost the blood rabbit¡¯s strength increased by two times!

    ¡°I can¡¯t let that blood rabbit draw any more of my blood, otherwise it could really kill me. Since it has grown stronger then I can¡¯t hold back anymore.¡± Akata¡¯s pupils became a more deeper crimson red, the color of blood, and they showed with a fierce will to fight. The red rune in his heart glowed brightly and spun even faster, as if it has been waiting for Akata to unleash its power.

    The pressure in the area intensified greatly to the point the grass and the surrounding smaller plants were crushed by it. The blood rabbit was the first to move, reaching Akata in the blink of an eye. Its mouth was wide open showing its fangs and only a few inches from Akata¡¯s neck. Akata slowly closed his eyes and took in a deep breath while he lifted up a single palm towards the blood rabbit. He grabbed it by the throat and pushed it into the ground with enough force that it formed a crater. The blood rabbit was instantly mangled and bloodied but it wasn¡¯t dead yet, and Akata wasn¡¯t finished either. His hand still on the blood rabbit¡¯s throat he lifted his other hand and formed a fist where he stuck down on the blood rabbit¡¯s head, crushing it.

    It was now thoroughly destroyed.

    Akata released his grip, pulled his fist back, and let out a long breath, then opened his eyes. After he opened his eyes he became very fatigued and he was beginning to black out. He only used an extremely small amount of strength from the red rune for less than a breath of time but he was on the verge of going unconscious. He bit his tongue to wake himself up and clear his mind. He picked up the rabbit and dashed back to the training field.

    It took around two hours for him to get back to the training field. One reason for this was when he was being chased by the blood rabbit he headed a little bit deeper into the forest. Another reason is that he was tired and had to rest on some occasions. There was one case when he found himself looking at a field of blood rabbits. The sight of it caused his heart to skip, and when they all started to sniff the air it made his body go cold and he immediately took a detour. Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

    Once he made it back he let out a long sigh of relief happy that he made it out. But then his mind thought of something else. ¡°Wait a minute! Ming Lu said that this blood rabbit was so weak that it would flee at its fastest speed upon seeing someone. Why would it do the complete opposite and what is up with it absorbing the blood of its enemies?! She has some explaining to do.¡±

    Akata brushed off his tiredness and headed towards the second cabin. Some nearby disciples saw him come out the forest and started discussing matters.

    ¡°Was that Akata just now? Why did he just come out of Misty Forest? And he¡¯s scratched up and looks tired.¡±

    ¡°He just became apprenticed to Demoness Ming Lu so maybe she told him to go in there for a test or something.¡±

    ¡°That place is extremely dangerous the weakest creatures in there are blood rabbits and they are even able to take your blood to make themselves stronger. How did he survive coming out?!¡±

    Akata could hear these disciples talking around him and when he heard the bit about the blood rabbits his heart clenched. Not only were they able to make use of their opponents blood to make themselves stronger, but they were the weakest creatures in there. Thinking of how the blood rabbit absorbed a tiny bit of his blood and became twice as strong and he still survived gave Akata chills. It also made him wonder about the strength of the red rune.

    ¡°I should probably not rely on this rune inside of me from now on and focus on my own strength. That way I¡¯ll be able to handle those blood rabbits with my eyes closed without even needing it.¡± Akata¡¯s eyes gleamed with determination and a fighting will. ¡°But first I have to ask master a few questions regarding those weak blood rabbits.¡±

    Soon he made it to the arena in front of the second cabin. When he was making his way across the arena a barrier suddenly sprang up. He went on full alert because he now couldn¡¯t sense anything outside of it, which meant nobody could sense anything inside.

    ¡°Hahaha calm down it¡¯s just a barrier to block out the outside world so people won¡¯t disturb any spars that go on. The top ten disciples all have one so when they spar others won¡¯t be able to see their skills. I just set mine up so nobody can see us, as you know absorbing blood takes a lot of concentration.¡±

    When Akata heard the chuckle he instantly calmed down and lowered his guard. After hearing Ming Lu speak he decided to not ask his questions regarding the blood rabbit. In his mind he knew she had planned all this, he could especially tell by her tone of voice and calmness even after she saw how much of a mess he looked like. He pushed the matter aside and clasped hands towards Ming Lu instead.

    Ming Lu was quite astonished by this action, she was expecting to be questioned heavily by Akata after he got back. But instead of questioning her he clasped hands. That was something unexpected. She stopped walking towards him and looked at him with a thoughtful look. After a breath''s worth of time she continued.

    ¡°Absorbing the blood of a beast is rather difficult as I have said before. If you mess up you can cripple your cultivation base or even die. The clan I come from cultivates in the art of absorbing the blood of beasts. We have multiple special techniques that allow us to do so in a safer manner and even then a number of us perish each year. Since these are the techniques of my Ming clan and I am nothing but a junior I am not obligated to share these techniques with you. But there is a technique that anyone can practice although it is the most dangerous. And that is the technique of the blood rabbits.¡±

    It was then that Ming Lu stepped in front of Akata and told him to sit, she then placed her hand on his forehead. ¡°I¡¯m going to transmit that technique to you. If you can succeed in following the technique then you¡¯ll be able to absorb the blood of your enemies while you¡¯re in battle. But if you fail, your blood will reject you and rush out of your body leaving you to die bloodless.¡± Her kind smile contradicted her words in every way possible. Her hand touched his forehead and the technique started being transmitted between the two. Akata closed his eyes.

    Take the blood of your enemies and use it for yourself

    Take the life of your enemies and use it for yourself

    What¡¯s theirs is yours and what¡¯s yours gets stronger

    Your blood is supreme, cut the enemy and slaughter

    Wage wars by yourself and bathe in a crimson flood

    Only then can you attain the true level of Paragon¡¯s Blood

    The scripture of the technique flooded into Akata¡¯s mind and caused his rune to rotate vigorously. It was like the technique was resonating with him, like it wanted only Akata to learn its ways and comprehend it. Akata¡¯s blood started flowing faster and in turn it caused the red rune to glow brighter and rotate faster.

    The transmission of the technique seemed to drain Ming Lu of her energy. After she was done she headed to her cabin. Akata was still sitting there comprehending the technique when he murmured, ¡°Paragon¡¯s Blood.¡± When she heard this she immediately stopped in her tracks and turned around her hand over her mouth. ¡°This is the highest level technique used in order to absorb the blood of beasts. It actually comes from ancient times and it is what the Ming Clan is founded on. If it wasn¡¯t for the fact that blood rabbits innately use the first part of this technique then it would solely be ours. The ancient records in our clan says that if it was even possible to comprehend this technique it would take at least a hundred years, and that would just be comprehending the first part of it. Yet he comprehended the first part in just a few breaths of receiving the technique and witnessing it for the first time? What kind of a monster is he?!¡±

    Ming Lu was truly astonished, even she couldn¡¯t comprehend any of the technique, and she was a genius when it came to absorbing the blood of beasts. How could someone who hasn¡¯t even heard of the concept of absorbing beasts blood be better than her. At the moment she felt envy, hatred, fear, and also admiration. She turned back around and walked off to her cabin.

    Akata sat there still comprehending the Paragon¡¯s Blood technique. He mused to himself, ¡®So this technique has three parts to it. I¡¯ve only comprehended the first part and yet the benefits it provides are tremendous.¡¯ As Akata sat there excitement ran through him because he just received tremendously good fortune. A slight smile even appeared on his face.

 Chapter 8: Akata Absorbs the Blood

    Akata sat in meditation for a full six hours focusing on the Paragon¡¯s Blood scripture. He made a few more advancements but it didn¡¯t have much of a difference on his strength. ¡°So it seems I¡¯ll have to fight to actually advance in this technique. That¡¯s perfect for me, it would be extremely boring if all I had to do was think about this and I became stronger.¡± Akata opened his eyes and his eyes were fierce with a fighting will. When he opened his eyes Ming Lu was on her way to him.

    ¡°Looks like you¡¯ve finished comprehending all you can. I guess you¡¯re ready to move on to the next step of actually absorbing the beasts blood.¡± She spoke with a smile on her face and a soft tone.

    ¡°Mn¡± replied Akata. He was raring to get stronger and he would do it by almost any means necessary. ¡°I¡¯m ready.¡±

    ¡°Good then let us get started then.¡± Ming Lu swished her sleeve and the Blood Rabbit appeared. The appearance of it caused Akata¡¯s blood to rotate faster. He took in a deep breath and closed his eyes to fully concentrate on using his Paragon¡¯s Blood ability to absorb others blood. This was a critical moment for him and if he failed it would lead to severe repercussions for him.

    Even though he had a technique to absorb blood it didn¡¯t mean he would be successful in using it. It¡¯s like if someone first taught you how to refine a pill, you necessarily wouldn¡¯t be able to do it yourself on your first try. But refining a pill was different because you could get more chances even after you first messed up; but if you messed up absorbing beasts blood then your life could be on the line.

    Akata circulated the blood in his body that was enhanced by the technique and reviewed the scripture in his mind. The first parts surfaced into his thoughts as he did so.

    Take the blood of your enemies and use it for yourself

    Take the life of your enemies and use it for yourself

    What¡¯s theirs is yours and what¡¯s yours gets stronger

    He mused to himself lightly, ¡°I¡¯ve taken the blood of the Blood Rabbit when I cut it. I also took the life of it when I defeated it. Now all that¡¯s left is to take what it has and make it my own.¡±

    Akata opened his eyes slowly and pointed his palm out towards the Blood Rabbit. A red glow sort of like a mist emanated from his hand soon the mist-like glow started to spread out. It seemed like the process of spreading out this red mist took a lot of mental and physical energy because Akata¡¯s hand immediately started to tremble slightly. The mist didn¡¯t head far only a meter or so in front of him towards the Blood Rabbit which laid there.

    When it came into contact with the Blood Rabbit, Akata felt his blood circulating rapidly. The blood from the Blood Rabbit was being forcefully absorbed by the red mist. The blood was being taken into the mist and transferred into Akata. It was intermixing with Akata¡¯s blood and was actually¡­ consuming his own blood! Akata was instantly shocked and tried to stop his blood from being consumed, but it didn¡¯t work. The consumption of his own blood was extremely painful and if it wasn¡¯t for his own blood being taken over, he would¡¯ve coughed up a mouthful of blood. It felt like each individual blood droplet was being burned into nonexistence. His eyes were bloodshot and he madly tried to incorporate the Paragon¡¯s Blood ability to forcefully absorb the other blood.

    His blood was being consumed all over his body. It started at his hand, then moved to his arm, and made its way to his cultivation base. Everywhere the blood was overtaken his skin turned pitch black. Only a few breaths of time had passed yet already half of his body had turned into a dark black spectacle.

    Ming Lu was instantly shocked by what she saw. Even though her clan specialised in absorbing the blood of beasts, she hadn¡¯t seen anything like this happening before. ¡°I¡¯ve never heard of repercussions such as this occurring before. And especially in this short amount of time. Is he going to fail this?¡± Ming Lu looked towards Akata but didn¡¯t interfere, mostly because she knew there was nothing she could do, the other part was fear.

    Akata continued to try and resist the consumption of his own blood as best he could. His blood continued to be consumed at a fast rate and Akata felt a sense of deadly crisis approaching. ¡°If I don¡¯t stop this from consuming my blood I¡¯ll die. There will be no just taking my cultivation base. What can I do to stop it? There¡¯s nothing in the scripture that tells me how to deal with this, Ming Lu didn¡¯t even mention this possibly happening.¡± Thoughts flashed through his mind to try and think of a way out of this situation.

    His blood continued to be consumed and it was at his cultivation base about now. It was now absorbing it and weakening Akata at an extremely rapid pace. Akata felt his body weakening and withering at an alarming speed. The consumption didn¡¯t just stop at his cultivation base either but surprisingly started headed to his soul region. Akata felt extremely alarmed right about now, but he didn¡¯t give up. His eyes shone brightly with a fighting will, this was still a fight to him. The battlefield was his own body and he was not going to lose on his own turf. His fighting will exploded out and the red rune in his soul region started rotating fiercely. This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

    The Blood Rabbit¡¯s blood in the soul region stopped in place and didn¡¯t approach the red rune. The rune spun rapidly and seemed to resonate with Akata¡¯s will to fight. Akata seemed to sense the rune trying to resonate with him and didn¡¯t try to resist it. The rune and Akata appeared to merge together and it caused his body to grow in strength and his blood to circulate at a fast speed. The blood in the soul region was immediately absorbed by the glow of the red rune. The absorbed blood was then given to Akata causing him to experience a sudden thought of enlightenment.

    ¡°My own blood is weak and fragile and therefore was easily consumed by the Blood Rabbit. Even though it was dead its blood had the absorbed strength of others. That¡¯s not the only reason I was easily overtaken by the blood, this technique Paragon¡¯s Blood is actually really harsh to whoever trains in it. It weakens your own blood so that you¡¯ll absorb the best of whatever it is you need. But in turn absorbing blood is hundreds of times harder to do.¡± Akata mused to himself as he started his counterattack on the consuming blood.

    His soul region was cleared out in the time it takes a spark to fly. Akata used this advantage while he had the chance. While the rune was absorbing the blood in his body, Akata was using the mist outside of his body to take in more blood from the Blood Rabbit. He didn¡¯t know what the rune was doing or how it was able to help him, but he was going to let it continue to make sure that he succeeded.

    In the blink of an eye the situation was reversed for Akata. His skin started healing and he was absorbing the blood of the Blood Rabbit at a fast rate. Ming Lu was shocked by this development and wondered what kind of freak Akata was. Even through the shock she let out a breath of relief.

    ¡°This is too shocking I¡¯ve only heard of one person reversing the effects of failing to absorb beasts blood, and that was the First Patriarch. But even the history says it wasn¡¯t as shocking as this; it says he was in a stalemate for weeks. But Akata not only wasn¡¯t in a stalemate, he actually absorbed the blood that already consumed his. Not even the First Patriarch was able to do that, he had to destroy the blood that was invading his body first then absorb what was left.¡± Ming Lu was truly astonished by what she was seeing and if Ming Xu was here she would be surprised as well.

    Akata¡¯s withered body started healing and he was looking younger as he absorbed the blood. His absorbing rate was many times faster than when the blood tried to consume him. He felt this new blood to be nourishing and strengthening his own body. ¡°This beast¡¯s blood is truly wonderful, not only will I be able to see the techniques of the beast that are imprinted in its blood, but I¡¯ll also gain the physical attributes of the beast as well. Once I fully absorb this beast I¡¯ll be at a completely different level. I may even reach Mortal Rank Grade 2.¡± As he continued to absorb his eyes gleamed with a bright light as he thought about increasing his strength.

    Red Cloud Hall

    Three people were standing beside Sect Leader Fu with their hands behind their backs. They weren¡¯t conversing with each other rather they were looking forward at a screen in front of them. The screen depicted Akata absorbing the Blood Rabbit¡¯s blood. They looked on quietly and kept their thoughts to themselves. When Akata finally managed to start absorbing the blood they let out a sigh of relief and then grief. It was then that one of them spoke.

    ¡°If only we could give him a better beast to absorb from then he could increase his strength by a multitude of times.¡± The person that spoke was a middle aged man with a rugged face. He wore a rough green robe that stopped at his ankles. He didn¡¯t speak with courtesy, he spoke as if he was talking with equals.

    ¡°I agree, there are many beast¡¯s on this continent that are many times better than that trifling Blood Rabbit. It¡¯s not even the best beast for when you start absorbing blood. It would be nice if we could gift him a Horned Blood Snake, its blood is much smoother and is better for absorption.¡± This person was a lady also in her middle ages. She wore a smooth green robe that glittered in the sunlight. Her black hair fell down to her back and her voice was soft. She too spoke as if she had status equal with the others.

    These two people actually didn¡¯t look to different from each other. In fact they were actually twins. They weren¡¯t ordinary twins either but held much power, especially together. Together they were known as the Heaven and Earth Twins. A title that struck fear into anyone''s heart who heard it. But to the people of the sect the man was Third Elder and the woman was Second Elder.

    ¡°Uncle Master, what do you think of this development?¡±

    The person that spoke wasn¡¯t either of the twins or the last person but rather it was Sect Leader Fu. She spoke in a delicate and respectful manner towards her master. She wasn¡¯t speaking to either of the twins but instead to a young man dressed in a red daoist robe. His hair was white and it reached to his shoulders. His seemingly contrasting appearance made others want to venerate him. His eyes were closed but when he heard Sect Leader Fu speak to him, he slowly opened them. When they opened they revealed a vast array of stars as if a whole universe existed within his eyes. He didn¡¯t look at Sect Leader Fu, or the twins, or even the screen. He was looking straight at Akata.

    Though everybody¡¯s strength in the room permitted them to see through objects, and the distance between them and Akata was well within the range of their sights; none of them were able to see through the barrier surrounding Akata and Ming Lu. That was because this barrier had an amazing amount of strength and blocked off everything. Even the laws of Heaven and Earth weren¡¯t permitted to get through. The only one capable of seeing through this heaven defying barrier was the person that casually set it up. And that was First Elder! The master of Sect Leader Fu! The strongest person in the sect and actually the whole continent they were on.

    It must be known that the Red Cloud Sect is considered to be the weakest sect in the whole Divine Crystal Continent. But each of these four people had enough strength to take over the whole continent by themselves! But they didn¡¯t do so and in fact they restricted their cultivation base down to an extreme degree. Down to the point where they appeared to be in the Mortal Realm Earthly Rank. In fact they couldn¡¯t suppress it more even if they wanted to otherwise they would. This was the absolute limit they could go.

    Mortals practiced Mortal Realm cultivation. That Mortal Realm first started with the Mortal Rank and after that came the Earthly Rank. It might not seem like a huge jump but it was the difference between the mud on the ground and the clouds in the sky.

    Sect Leader Fu highly respected these three people. To the other sect members they were merely Elders of this weak sect, but to her they were beings that could shake anything they pleased; especially her master.

 Chapter 9: Enlightenment

    Second and Third Elder became quiet when Sect Leader Fu asked her question. She was their own Sect Leader¡¯s daughter and also the apprentice of the Great Elder of their home sect. Sect Leader Fu held a high status in the sect and she had great talent but she wasn¡¯t a top tier figure just yet so the two Elders merely gave her face and acknowledgement. But they did truly admire the Great Elder. Not only did he have power equivalent to the Sect Leader but he was also the brother of him also. That was power and status that greatly surpassed themselves. While they knew they could conquer this continent with just one of them and not even break a sweat, the Great Elder could defeat both of them together without even using magic. This was truly frightening power. Whenever they looked at the Great Elder it made them proud to be a part of the sect.

    Only after a few breaths of time did he close his eyes and speak. He spoke in a calm unhurried tone. Whenever he spoke it was like the heavens would shake, as if whatever he said became law.

    ¡°We shouldn¡¯t do anything to interfere with him. Let him walk his own path and see where he ends up. Eventually he will become stronger than all of us. Stronger than any of us can imagine.¡±

    He didn¡¯t speak any further words and left everyone at a loss.

    Stronger than any of us can imagine?

    It must be known that these top tiered people have witnessed a lot. And they have definitely seen strength that far surpasses anything seen in this realm. How could anything possibly be out of their imagination.

    They didn¡¯t question the words of the First Elder, only thought to themselves. They knew that if he had spoken these words he must have something to back it up. So they simply went on to watching the screen in front of them. Paying even closer attention now.

    Training Field

    Akata was sitting cross legged and by now he had fully taken in all the blood of the Blood Rabbit. When all the blood was taken in he felt a jolt in his body. His skin became tougher, his bones sturdier, his muscles tensed up. Everything in his body was changing. He took in a deep breath that riled up the wind in the area and made it brush up against him. His eyes opened slowly to show his fiery red desire to fight. He now had the cultivation base level of Mortal Rank Grade 2.

    Normally when people broke through grades, just the energy in their dantion region would become denser and therefore allow them to wield more power. Akata on the other hand trained his body therefore his body became tougher when he broke through. Since his body broke through, he now had the body strength of a Mortal Rank Grade 4 cultivator. Akata was thrilled and stood up to test out his strength.

    Ming Lu was there the whole time and put a hand in the air to signal him to stop.

    ¡°It¡¯s good that you succeeded and it¡¯s even better that you actually ended up making a breakthrough, but now is not the time nor the place to test yourself. I¡¯m sure you remember the next step in your training.¡± Ming Lu said with a smile on her face.

    Akata looked towards Ming Lu and nodded. He then clasped hands and headed to Misty Forest. By now it was dark out and only a few disciples were in the training field. Akata didn¡¯t rush towards the forest and only strolled. His sight was now better than it used to be so he could see better in the dark than usual.

    The night sky was clear and the stars shone with radiance. Akata looked up at the sky and was amazed by the spectacle. There were an innumerable amount of stars in the sky, all of them different shapes, colors, and sizes. As he was looking he saw a small meteor in the distance shooting off. He couldn¡¯t help but think of the vision of the gryphon and the meteor.

    Akata stopped walking and stared at the meteor off in the distant space. He didn¡¯t know why he stopped only that he felt a sort of connection towards the meteor. He felt that it could give him unimaginable power in the future. He looked deeply at the meteor, at the shape, speed, and size of it. Nothing made it slow down and it crushed everything in its path.

    Akata sat down cross legged where he was and closed his eyes. Right now he was going through something that many others wouldn¡¯t experience in their whole lifetime, and that was gaining enlightenment from nature.

    The meteor seemed to sense Akata trying to connect with it and suddenly changed directions and headed for him. Being in space where there was nothing to slow it down all it did was speed up coming closer to Akata with increasing speed. Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.

    Akata sat in meditation for the rest of the night and even throughout the day. When gaining enlightenment people could spend however long was needed for them to truly contemplate enlightenment. Even though Akata was in the training field and just sitting there, nobody disturbed him. Even though there were some jealous people that envied him greatly and even spoke of messing him up they wouldn¡¯t dare do so. It¡¯s not that they were scared it¡¯s just that as fellow cultivators they knew how important enlightenment was. If they were to mess someone else''s enlightenment up then they wouldn¡¯t feel confident in going through with theirs if they experienced it.

    Not only that but as Akata sat in meditation gaining enlightenment, a barrier sprang up around him so that even if someone wanted to intrude they couldn¡¯t. This barrier was set up by First Elder. Even though First Elder¡¯s barriers could block out the laws of Heaven and Earth he didn¡¯t allow this one to do so as it could mess with Akata¡¯s enlightenment. He wasn¡¯t really interfering with Akata, he knew others in the sect wouldn¡¯t disturb his enlightenment but he wanted to make sure no powerful figures were aware of the fact that Akata was gaining enlightenment.

    The meteor was heaven''s supreme object. It was allowed to do anything it pleased without repercussion. If it didn¡¯t approve of anything it would speed towards it and crush it with overwhelming might, obliterating whatever is in its path. The heaven¡¯s did nothing to stop the meteors destruction and therefore people considered it to be a supreme being with unlimited power. Regular people would venerate its power and look at it with awe, but the supreme figures of the world knew how much the heaven¡¯s favored the meteor. If someone was to gain enlightenment regarding the meteor and control them it would be truly astonishing.

    The barrier that went up around Akata wasn¡¯t the only one. Multiple barriers went up in quick succession. One around Akata, then the sect, then the country, then the continent, then the world, and finally all the way out until it contained the meteor that was speeding towards Akata. First Elder was actually surprised to see Akata gaining enlightenment to a celestial object such as a meteor at such a young age. When he first noticed the heavenly connection between the two he instantly put up multiple barriers so that others wouldn¡¯t sense it.

    You might think that with all these barriers and how grand they are others would take notice, but First Elder was actually a supreme expert in setting up barriers and seals. He put all his focus on setting up each barrier and even though he did it rapidly and at a grand scale he didn¡¯t disturb the natural law in the area in any way. Making it so that others didn¡¯t even know a barrier was put up.

    First Elder was seated on the floor cross legged focusing on keeping up the barrier. Sensing that nobody was approaching he let out a breath of relief and eased up but didn¡¯t lower his focus on the barrier at all. His skill was so great that Second and Third Elder didn¡¯t even notice the barrier that was put into place. It happened so fast they didn¡¯t even have time to sense the heavenly connection between Akata and the meteor.

    When First Elder finished surveying the surroundings he immediately called for Third and Second Elder. They came in an instant out of nowhere.

    ¡°Akata is gaining enlightenment regarding a supreme celestial object favored by the heavens. As soon as I felt the heavenly connection between them I set up multiple barriers to prevent others from noticing. I¡¯ve already surveyed the area to make sure nobody is coming but that doesn¡¯t mean that they won¡¯t. I¡¯ll have to ask you two to survey the area also. I¡¯ll leave a clone with each of you that way when you need to report back to me I¡¯ll know right away. I have to put my full focus on the barrier so I can¡¯t send my true body with you. Don¡¯t worry about danger though and stay close to the barrier. If something goes wrong warn me and come inside. If Akata finishes his enlightenment before anything happens then I¡¯ll release the barrier.¡±

    Second and Third Elder were extremely shocked. Just from the first sentence they knew how important this was. They didn¡¯t ask any questions or stay a while longer. As soon as First Elder stopped speaking they disappeared.

    As soon as First Elder finished talking two of his hairs on his head stood up and plucked off of his head, then transformed to look exactly like him. These were his clones. Everything about them was the same from the looks, smell, techniques used, and memories. The only difference between them is the fact that these clones were pitifully weak compared to the real person. But even though compared to the true body they were pitifully weak, when compared to the strength of this continent it could be considered a Patriarch in a large strong clan. These two clones instantly disappeared too, one following the Second Elder and the other following Third Elder.

    First Elder didn¡¯t need to address Sect Leader Fu on the matter for two reasons. Firstly she wouldn¡¯t be able to understand the true depth of a heavenly connection to a supreme celestial object, and secondly with her strength she wouldn¡¯t be of any use and would in fact be in the way. It wasn¡¯t rude to exclude her from these things as she was still just the junior generation compared to them. She didn¡¯t control them or anything, they were just there to watch over things and keep her and Akata safe.

    In fact First Elder didn¡¯t have to come. With his status and power it would actually be ruining his reputation if he were ordered to come here to just be a guard. It was originally just supposed to be the Heaven and Earth Twins, but his own brother begged him and even got on his knees so that First Elder could watch over them. How could First Elder say no to that?

    He didn¡¯t mind though and in fact he would¡¯ve gone anyways even if he wasn¡¯t asked. One because it was his family, and two he knew how important the mission was and had to make sure things went smoothly. He was actually a bit delighted to see his brother do such a thing.

    Training Field

    Akata remained seated as he was gaining enlightenment. It has already been five days since he sat down. It was nighttime now and the sky was once again clear of clouds. The stars shone brightly and everything was serene and normal. Everything except for the meteor that was now very close to the sect.

    It entered the atmosphere and was burning into smaller fragments. It was still heading towards Akata at an amazing speed. Akata didn¡¯t know a meteor was heading in his direction. While others felt the tremendous pressure from the meteor, Akata felt something he was connected to coming closer to him. He felt as if he could connect to it then he would finish his enlightenment.

    The meteor was coming in closer and surrounding cities were evacuating while powerful figures of the empire were thinking of ways to stop it. But to their surprise when they tried to get into Purple Sky City where the meteor was headed they were stopped by a barrier. Nothing they tried could get them through.

    The meteor was getting closer and closer and as it got closer and burned up it was getting smaller and smaller. Akata felt that he was really close to enlightenment. As the meteor closed in he felt that he was really close.

    50,000 meters, 25,000 meters, 10,000 meters, 5,000 meters¡­

    It was at this moment that Akata opened his eyes and stood up to see the incoming meteor. When he saw it he wasn¡¯t surprised. He actually had a smile on his face. Then he lifted his finger toward the meteor and when it was close enough he¡­ tapped it.

 Chapter 10: Astral Obliteration

    Nobody was around to see the tap as they all evacuated. Some of them tried to get Akata but were astonished to see that they couldn¡¯t get near him because a barrier blocked their way. While some tried to break through the barrier and save him others immediately left. It wasn¡¯t until Sect Leader Fu came that the one¡¯s who stayed left. Sect Leader Fu looked at Akata deeply and then turned to leave. It wasn¡¯t because she was scared of the meteor but because her Uncle Master told her to evacuate everyone, including herself.

    She had been come to take notice of the barriers surrounding the areas but didn¡¯t question her Uncle Master. If he didn¡¯t bother telling her about it then it was something she couldn¡¯t handle. She also took notice of Second and Third Elder¡¯s absence and also didn¡¯t inquire about this.

    Akata lifted up his finger toward the meteor and tapped it. It looked as if he was insane for trying to stand up to a meteor, and especially with only a tap. It was as if he thought himself to be a celestial being of some sorts.

    When his finger made contact with the meteor it actually wasn¡¯t crushed into oblivion. That was because the meteor stopped moving and just hovered there in front of Akata. Then a crack appeared on it and spread out from the point of contact. The cracks spread out far and wide and soon pieces of the meteor crumbled.

    Although they crumbled and fell they still floated there. Soon the whole meteor crumbled into rubble, then into chunks, then pieces, and finally dust. A big cloud of dust now floated in front of Akata.

    The cloud of dust slowly started turning until it looked like a whirlpool. All of a sudden it started to shrink. All the dust was collecting into a small pebble in the center of the whirlpool. It kept shrinking until there was no dust left and only the small pebble.

    It was only a small pebble but it held the immense power of the meteor compacted into it. The pressure it radiated was truly dense and overbearing. The pebble then showed with a bright light that was blinding to the eyes. Even First Elder who was still sitting in the same place watching had to look away. Only Akata could keep on looking at the pebble which was transforming. It radiated a bright golden light and changed the small pebble into¡­ A golden rune.

    The rune floated there as bright as ever looking as if it was the only thing allowed to exist in heaven. Akata could feel a strong connection to the rune. His finger was still stretched out and the rune suddenly shot towards it. It then fused into his body and settled in his soul region along with the red rune.

    The golden rune seemed to sense the presence of the red rune and flew straight at it in an attempt to attack it. Akata could sense all this happening inside of his body. Outside his body glowed with a red and gold light. The red rune saw the gold rune speeding towards it and as if the will to fight burst forth within it, it glowed bright as ever with a red light. The glow outshone the golden rune and the rune trembled and stopped in place. The light that was shining off of it dimmed as if it didn¡¯t want to even compete with the red rune. The red rune¡¯s light showed brightly asserting its dominance. It didn¡¯t even have to move.

    Akata¡¯s eyes were wide with shock at what he was witnessing. He didn¡¯t know what runes were or why they fought each other, but he could tell that the red run ehe had was extremely powerful and he shouldn¡¯t take it lightly.

    ¡°I have to figure out what runes are. Maybe I¡¯ll learn how to control them better, or even how to make more!¡± At the thought of this Akata¡¯s eyes showed brightly. He made the choice to learn magic also, and become stronger that way too.

    The golden and red light shining off of him dimmed down until it went away completely. Akata didn¡¯t do anything extra just sat back down and studied the golden rune. After a while he smiled.

    ¡°My skill shall be called Astral Obliteration. I may not have the strength to fully use it as I want but in the future it shall crush worlds, shatter the heavens, and annihilate universes. This shall be my ultimate skill that will spread my name everywhere!¡±

    The whole enlightenment period took five days to complete. It didn¡¯t enhance his cultivation base or make his body stronger, it was enlightenment that he could use to trample upon his future foes though.

    Akata stood up and didn¡¯t head to his room but toward Misty Forest where he would continue his training. If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.

    First Elder seeing that the enlightenment was done let out a sigh of relief and released the barrier. Second and Third Elder seeing that the barrier was released also let out sighs of relief. Nobody came to interfere with Akata¡¯s enlightenment and they didn¡¯t have to risk their lives.

    People that were evacuating were surprised to see that everything was alright. The surrounding cities seeing that the barrier was down immediately sent some of its stronger cultivators to assess what was going on. They wanted to find out about this meteor coming and yet it didn¡¯t destroy anything, it just vanished.

    Mystic Imperial City, Shenmi Royal Palace, Throne Room

    This grand place had an air of royalty about it. It had blue and gold ribbons hanging from the ceiling. A giant chandelier hung from the ceiling also. The walls were a creamy white and the floor was made of fine stone. The stone was extremely tough and was harder than steel. Inside the throne room there were five people. A royal couple and their daughter stood on one side and on the other side there was a boy and his father.

    The children were around the same age of 12-13 years. They looked at each other but didn¡¯t say anything. The only ones talking were the two males.

    ¡°Brother Shenmi your daughter looks to be doing quite well for herself. Her looks will be unquestioned when she grows and her talent is superb as well. In a few years time she will be of the age to marry so why don¡¯t you give your daughter to my son here. He is by far the only one worthy enough to take her hand in marriage.¡± The father by the side of the boy spoke sincerely and earnestly. He was a handsome middle aged man and wore a blue robe.

    ¡°Brother Xiun don¡¯t you think this is a bit sudden? It¡¯s not that I don¡¯t agree with it, it¡¯s just that you came without notice and we weren¡¯t prepared for you. Why don¡¯t we have ourselves a good time and then discuss matters later on. It¡¯s not often that you come to visit.¡± The man by the side of his wife and daughter was also middle aged. He wore an azure robe that stopped at his feet. His black hair hung to his neck and on top of his head was a golden crown. He was the emperor of Mystic Empire.

    ¡°Ah yes how rude of me. I thought to send word of my arrival but with the sudden crisis I didn¡¯t want to trouble any of my servants. Yes yes let us have ourselves a good time then.¡± The blue robed man happily agreed as he sent his son towards the young girl.

    ¡°Li¡¯er show Xiun Wu here around the castle and play with him. When it¡¯s time to eat I¡¯ll call for you both.¡± This time the woman spoke and her voice was meltingly soft. She wore a pink robe and her face was soft and rosy.

    ¡°Yes royal mother.¡± The daughter spoke respectfully towards her mother and led the boy towards her room.

    The boy had blonde hair and blue eyes. He wore a blue robe and he looked proud. If you were to see him you would be shocked to see that he was Xiun Wu.

    When the children left so did the woman. Now that the room was empty except for the two men their faces instantly grew dark. It was like they were holding all the grief in just to let it out at this moment.

    The first one to speak was the name surnamed Shenmi. ¡°What news have you uncovered about the Red Cloud Sect?¡±

    ¡°They¡¯re as tight on information as we are. It¡¯s extremely hard to get any secrets out of it. We still don¡¯t know the background of the first three Elders of the sect or the identity of their Sect Leader. I¡¯ve always come to view that sect as not the weakest but the most mysterious. Whatever secrets they are holding it is sure to be big, and if we can get ahold of it we can probably rise in power.¡± The man surnamed Xiun said in a cold voice.

    The emperor looked at the man surnamed Xiun as if weighing his words. Then spoke his next words slowly. ¡°We¡¯ll attack the Red Cloud Sect in a few months time. By then we would have gathered all the information possible to get. We¡¯ll forcefully take the rest. Keep this matter a secret from others, and build up your forces as well.¡±

    The emperor was silent for a while contemplating something and then said, ¡°And as for the matter of marriage it depends on how well this plan goes.¡± With that the conversation was over and the emperor called for a feast.

    Red Cloud Sect, Misty Forest

    Akata was standing on a tree branch looking out at a group of three Blood Rabbits. ¡°Ming Lu said it wasn¡¯t the time to test my strength so I guess I shouldn¡¯t attack. Let¡¯s find a place that I can rest at and meditate on my surroundings.¡± He then dashed off into a distant location towards a cave.

    ¡°This should be a good enough place to study my surroundings. I wonder what she meant by connecting with nature?¡± Akata sat down cross legged and closed his eyes so that he could become one with nature. He sat like that for hours on end.

    A day passed by in the blink of an eye and by now most of the people that evacuated have now returned. They were shocked to see that no destruction was found. It was as if there hadn¡¯t been a meteor at all and they ran from nothing. People started back with their daily routines and soon life was normal again.

    The sect was also normal. Some people did wonder where Akata went like Ming Lu, Ming Xu, and other fellow disciples. Xiun Wu wasn¡¯t back either and that caused Ming Xu and Xi Fe to be shocked. Although it was only temporary shock as they received word from him that he was going to be away for a short while. All in all life in the sect was gradually going back to the way it had been.

    Akata still sat in meditation trying to become one with nature. It had now been four days and he still didn¡¯t have a clue about how to connect to it. Akata sank into deep thought as he thought of ways to feel nature. Akata opened his eyes looking rather disappointed.

    ¡°How in the heck am I supposed to resonate with nature?!¡± He was truly at a loss of what to do. Akata stared out at the numerous plants that surrounded him. Everything looked normal to him; the grass blades were green, the leaves on the trees were green, the stems on plants were green. Nothing stood out to him.

    ¡°Maybe I¡¯m focusing on the wrong things here. I¡¯m supposed to be resonating with nature, becoming one with it. Nature doesn¡¯t move around or talk. It just accepts where it is and takes what comes its way. It¡¯s like a fighter, it fights for survival against countless other fighters. Only by luck and virtue can it survive. I have to be one with nature so to do that I have to fight for the opportunity to steal from the surrounding area and make what¡¯s here mine.¡±

    Akata¡¯s eyes gleamed with determination and motivation. He found his new way to connect with nature. It wasn¡¯t just sitting around and slowly feel nature out. No, he was going to be like the rest of the plants and battle for supremacy and survival. He was going to fight for the right to resonate with nature.

 Chapter 11: Hunting Game

    He didn¡¯t go right back into meditation though but instead stood up. Although he was a cultivator he was only at the Mortal Rank so he still had to eat. ¡°Now that I think about it I haven¡¯t eaten in a long while. I should probably catch some food.¡± As he was thinking to himself his stomach made a growling sound.

    Akata looked out into the forest and then made his way deeper inside. ¡°I should play a game then, since I¡¯m not supposed to test my true strength just yet. How about I play a hunter and stalk my prey only using regular mortal ways to catch food. I¡¯ll even use a stick as a spear.¡± Akata had a big smile on his face as he thought of this and snapped a branch off a nearby tree.

    ¡°This one will do, now to find some prey.¡± Akata crept through the forest trying to keep as silent as possible. He wasn¡¯t using any techniques to quiet his steps or cover his breathing. He was just relying on mortal ways to hunt his prey.

    He searched high and low for hours until he came across a Fanged Monkey. The monkey had brown and green fur covering its whole body making it hard to even make out. It was a short monkey and if it was in a store you would think it was just a furry ball. It had saber teeth that stuck out of its mouth making it look adorable and fierce at the same time.

    When Akata spotted it he immediately came to a stop. He really was getting rather hungry. The Fanged Monkey was sitting on a tree eating a fruit. Akata crept closer to the monkey and held his makeshift spear in hand ready to launch it. He had never practiced with a spear but he felt confident in his ability to throw it and kill something, especially if it wasn¡¯t moving.

    When Akata felt that he was within range he held his spear back and aimed it as best he could. Then he threw it forward straight at the Fanged Monkey. The makeshift spear whistled through the air towards the monkey. Akata didn¡¯t use his cultivation base to throw the spear nor did he use the full strength of his body. He wanted to restrict himself down to a mortal¡¯s level. The spear went to the target and was closing in on the monkey.

    WHAM!

    The spear hit the tree that the monkey was on causing leaves to fall to the ground. It was about five meters off from the target. Akata had a blank face on as he was watching the spear move farther away from the target as it whistled through the air. Then when it hit the tree he felt so empty that if a wind blew by he would have toppled over like a statue.

    The Fanged Monkey heard the spear strike the tree and it looked at the direction it came from to see Akata. It let out a howl and threw its fruit at Akata and dashed off in the opposite direction.

    Akata was still standing in the same place with a blank face looking at the spot that the spear hit. It wasn¡¯t until the fruit smashed into his face that he became conscious again. He quickly wiped the fruit off his face and rushed after the monkey.

    ¡°What the HECK was that?! My aim was way off. It looks like I can¡¯t use the spear as well as I thought. I guess long range isn¡¯t my forte.¡± As he was running through these thoughts and chasing after the monkey he snapped off another branch. He was going to use this a sword.

    ¡°Using a mortal¡¯s speed isn¡¯t going to have me catch up to this monkey.¡± Akata mused to himself as he saw the extremely fast monkey getting farther. ¡°I don¡¯t even think I could catch it even if I was using my cultivation base.¡± Akata was then shocked by the display of speed from the monkey.

    He stopped chasing the monkey and then started searching for some other prey. Whenever Akata came across some plants or fruit he would certainly eat it. But it wasn¡¯t enough for him for two reasons. Firstly it didn¡¯t fill him up and secondly he didn¡¯t want to fail his so called game and not be able to complete the hunt. ¡°If I can¡¯t even hunt an animal while using the strength of a regular human then I can¡¯t call myself a cultivator! If I don¡¯t complete this then I¡¯ll have a shadow over my heart and won¡¯t be able to advance in cultivating.¡±

    Akata continued to look for prey to hunt. But each time he found one something would mess him up. One time he stepped on a stick and the prey scurried off, another time his robe got caught, then another when he was about to strike his stomach growled. Akata was now focusing on his eighth target, a Blood Rabbit.

    Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.

    He slowly crept up to it from behind a bush. He didn¡¯t immediately attack but instead checked himself to make sure he was ready. He checked everything; robe, stomach, sticks, wind, hair, toes, bones, bladder, etc. After he was sure that nothing could mess up he then went in for the kill. He moved fast and was upon the rabbit in an instant, he still wasn¡¯t using his cultivation or his body, just the experience of numerous failures.

    He was just about to strike the rabbit when all of a sudden a huge bird came and swooped it up. Akata face went blank once again as it had numerous times before. He was so at a loss that he didn¡¯t even think to stop himself and fell on the ground flat on his face. He immediately sat up and yelled to himself.

    ¡°WHAT IN THE ACTUAL HECK?!?! WHY CAN¡¯T I CATCH A FUDGING ANIMAL?! WHAT THE FLAP?!¡± After his series of curses he calmed his mind down.

    ¡°I¡¯m not doing something right. From what I know people were able to hunt down faster and more trickier creatures than this and they didn¡¯t even cultivate.¡± Akata was really at a loss and despair was creeping up on him. He sat there not moving for a while, he wasn¡¯t thinking of ways to catch some prey but was just using the time to calm his mind.

    Some time later Akata saw a frog hopping along. It was hopping without a care in the world and eventually stopped by a bush where it just sat there. Akata looked at the frog closely, he felt something was going to happen. The frog sat there for a while and then a fly came along. The fly flew around until it landed on a nearby leaf. The frog noticed the fly but didn¡¯t do anything it still sat there. Akata was confused for a moment.

    ¡°Why doesn¡¯t it hurry and eat the fly before it goes away.¡± He thought to himself and still looked closely at the frog. It was then that all of a sudden it shot its tongue out like lightning towards the fly where it grabbed it and pulled it into its mouth. The fly didn¡¯t even have the chance to resist. Akata was surprised but then his face turned into astonishment.

    As soon as the frog closed its mouth with the fly inside a snake shot out and consumed the frog. It happened so fast that if you looked away you would¡¯ve missed it. ¡°I didn¡¯t even notice the snake hiding there. It must¡¯ve been watching and concealing itself even before I got here.¡± As Akata thought this he came to a realization. ¡°The snake blended in with nature in the place where it knew its prey would come. It was waiting patiently just for this moment and when the chance came it struck out fast and efficiently.¡±

    As Akata came to this thought he stood up and dashed off into the distance. When he found a place by a tree he stopped and sat down cross legged. He didn¡¯t meditate or focus on recovering himself, he just focused on his surroundings waiting for his prey to come.

    By now he had spent three days hunting for prey. After watching the fly, frog, and snake he came to a new realization that he was going to try out now. Akata sat there focused on sensing any new arrival in the area. After about 6 hours of waiting a smile went across his face. He then tried his best to conceal his aura and focused solely on the approaching figure. All of his attention was on this new found prey. And this prey was a Fanged Monkey.

    The Fanged Monkey was approaching a nearby tree as it was looking for fruit to eat. When it smelled some it came hurrying by. This Fanged Monkey just so happened to be the first animal Akata came by when he began his hunting game. The monkey stopped on a branch and then looked around as if it had sensed something out of the ordinary.

    Akata saw this but didn¡¯t do anything. He didn¡¯t retract his aura or stop focusing on the monkey he simply continued with what he was doing. What Akata didn¡¯t know was that his aura was mixing in with nature''s aura and obscuring his. It was like he was becoming a part of nature itself.

    The monkey eventually stopped looking around because it didn¡¯t sense that strange aura anymore. It then continued on towards the fruit. The monkey hadn¡¯t left Akata¡¯s sight since he noticed that it was coming. Of course Akata wasn¡¯t actually looking at the monkey he was more so feeling where it was. It was like seeing with your eyes closed.

    The monkey proceeded to the fruit and then plucked it off the tree. It then sat down on the branch and took a bite out of it. Akata didn¡¯t immediately move to kill the monkey, he didn¡¯t feel that it was the right time. He waited and waited until he felt that it was time to strike, strike with speed and efficiency.

    The monkey continued to eat the fruit bite by bite. Akata wasn¡¯t becoming impatient but rather felt at ease. He could tell by now that he had become one with nature and that he had succeeded in Ming Lu¡¯s final task. But now was the time to complete his task. Akata was sitting on a branch above the monkey. He chose this spot because it was right above the fruit that was there. That fruit was the same kind of fruit that monkey had hit him with before and this was also the same area he was in. Because of this Akata felt that this was the perfect place to lure in a certain animal as prey.

    The monkey was now lifting it¡¯s hand up to take the final bite of the fruit. All of a sudden Akata jumped down off the branch above the monkey and pounced on it. He held his wooden sword in hand and aimed it straight at the head of the monkey. The monkey didn¡¯t even have the time to fully put the fruit in its mouth before it was impaled. It was killed in an instant.

    Akata had a smile on his face as he restored his cultivation back. ¡°It seems I finally did it. Now to eat me some real food.¡± Akata thought this and licked his lips.

    He set up a fire and was about to put the monkey in when he thought of something. ¡°I should probably absorb its blood first.¡± With that he used his Paragon¡¯s Blood ability to absorb the blood of the Fanged Monkey.

    He felt his blood circulating rapidly and the red rune in his soul started to spin to absorb the blood more smoothly and at a faster rate. In the time of a quarter of an hour he absorbed all the blood of the Fanged Monkey. ¡°That was faster than last time. This Fanged Monkey only had the strength of a Grade 1 beast so it didn¡¯t do much for my cultivation. But I did get a new technique out of it. This [Shadowfeet] skill is used for speed, no wonder it is so fast.¡±

    Akata was amazed by the fact he got a technique out of this low level beast. He wasn¡¯t expecting it so it came as a rather good surprise.

    ¡°Well now that I have resonated with nature it¡¯s time to head back and report to Ming Lu. Then I¡¯ll be able to spar with her and finally test my strength.¡± Akata had a bright smile on his face and his red eyes showed with a fiery fighting will.

    He then finished cooking and eating the Fanged Monkey and headed back to the sect. Straight towards the second cabin.

 Chapter 12: Challenging the Cabins

    Akata made his way through Misty Forest. As he was running out of the forest he tried to contemplate the Shadowfeet technique he just received. It only took a little bit of thought to gain a basic understanding of the technique. Since the Fanged Monkey blood was running through his veins, the skill was literally imprinted in his blood.

    He utilized the skill and his body turned into a shadow and sped forward about ten meters in an instant. The speed was even faster than when the Fanged Monkey had used it. Akata was delighted and used the skill continuously to reach the training field at an alarming speed. He slowed down when he approached though and stopped using it. He wanted to keep this skill a secret from others and use it as a trump card.

    When he stepped out of the forest it was nighttime and few disciples were in the training field. For the one¡¯s that were on the field, when they saw Akata step out of the forest they were astonished.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t that Akata? Why is he stepping out of the forest, where has he been?¡±

    ¡°He disappeared after the meteor came down. I always thought the Sect Leader took him.¡±

    ¡°This is the second time I¡¯ve seen him exit Misty Forest. Is he training in there or something?¡±

    Questions and comments popped up from the few disciples still on the training field who caught sight of him. It was one thing to test out how dangerous Misty Forest is, and for the most part people who made it back out, wouldn¡¯t go back in. But Akata, after being missing for over a week, actually showed back up exiting the forest. And he didn¡¯t seem the least bit bewildered by anything like he was just taking a stroll through.

    To Akata right now, going through Misty Forest truly was like taking a stroll. Not only was his body strength above most of the cultivation levels of the creatures in the forest, but his skills made it so that he improved after each fight. You could say that a place like Misty Forest was the perfect training grounds for Akata. With different types of blood he could get more skills and grow in strength.

    He made his way across the training field towards Ming Lu¡¯s cabin. He didn¡¯t bother with question regarding him as he wanted others to keep on guessing. He thought it would make him seem more mysterious and cool.

    Soon he was at the second cabin and walked towards the second cabin¡¯s personal arena grounds. He went to the arena and sat down cross legged in the middle of it. He wasn¡¯t meditating or recovering, but instead was connecting with his surroundings.

    He felt the wind buffeting his face, he felt the blades of grass sway in the air, he felt the moon shine on him. He was really in touch with nature as of this moment.

    Soon the first rays of sunlight could be seen stretching out over the mountains. The sensation of warmth covered over Akata and made him feel refreshed. It was a delightful feeling especially since he was attune with nature. He felt the great sensation and then felt that somebody approaching him. He focused all his attention on this person, and soon saw that it was Ming Lu. His eyes were closed so he couldn¡¯t truly see this person but instead felt its aura through nature.

    Akata opened his eyes and stood up then clasped hands and bowed towards Ming Lu. Ming Lu was actually caught off guard by this. At first when she walked out of her cabin she didn¡¯t sense anybody around but still had the feeling somebody was there. She started looking around but still couldn¡¯t find anybody, in the midst of looking around she suddenly saw Akata standing up.

    ¡®Just what kind of training did he put himself through to connect with the environment this soon. Normal people take a month or more to begin sensing the environment, but he actually connected with it? That should be a process which takes months. Although he hasn¡¯t fully connected with it, he has made some major progress. He should be around Little Xu Xu¡¯s skill in it.¡¯ Ming Lu immediately pondered this when she noticed Akata. She then stopped thinking on the matter and brought her attention to Akata.

    ¡°I actually wasn¡¯t expecting you to progress this far in attuning yourself with nature. It¡¯s not that I wasn¡¯t expecting you to be able to, it¡¯s just that you did it so quickly. You actually saved month''s worth of training for yourself, so because of that I have to change up the training regimen.¡±

    Akata was actually a bit surprised by this. He wasn¡¯t expecting that connecting with nature would take so long. He then mused to himself lightly, ¡®No wonder it felt like I wouldn¡¯t connect with nature in a short time when I was meditating on it. It¡¯s a good thing I¡¯m impatient.¡¯ Ming Lu looked closely at Akata and then began to speak again. This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

    ¡°This new training isn¡¯t meant for advancing in cultivation or for improving your body. This training¡¯s first goal is to teach you the ways of survival. You¡¯ll go back into Misty Forest and head as deep as you can towards the center. Go as far as you can and stay there for two months time. Each time you feel that you can tread deeper then do so. If you haven¡¯t reached the center by two months then stay longer until you do so. Normal people would think this is crazy but you have already spent quite a bit of time in Misty Forest and have also learned to hide your presence by connecting with nature. Only by repeated use can you improve upon this and by experiencing deadly situations can you learn to survive better.¡± It was then that Ming Lu stopped speaking and looked deeply at Akata.

    Akata had his mouth gaped open and his eyes wide at the sound of Ming Lu¡¯s words. She wanted him to spend two months in the most dangerous place in the city? Not only that but she wanted him to go to the very center of it. That was where the strongest beasts were located. Akata¡¯s mind was racing through many things as he thought about this, ¡®She¡¯s crazy, a psycho, she wants me dead, why would she do this, did we have enmity in the past life?¡¯ As Akata was lost in thought Lu Ming spoke up again.

    ¡°I¡¯ll give you a week¡¯s worth of rest first, and as for that spar between you and me, you¡¯ll have to earn it. Make your way through the cabin¡¯s until you can get the chance to fight me fair and square. And don¡¯t hurt my sister too badly will you.¡± With that she turned to leave heading for her cabin.

    Akata wasn¡¯t a dumb child, he instantly knew what Ming Lu meant. She wanted him to get to know his strength through repeated battles with strong people in order to know his limit when he goes into the forest. Akata¡¯s eyes filled with a fighting will and he walked off. Not towards Misty Forest or his room, but towards the tenth cabin!

    It was daytime now and more disciples were on the field. When they saw that Akata was heading towards the tenth cabin, exclamations of surprise resounded.

    ¡°Is that Akata when did he get back? Is he heading towards the tenth cabin?¡±

    ¡°He walked out of Misty Forest last night, I think he was training in there.¡±

    ¡°Training in Misty Forest is he crazy?! And if so does he think he has enough strength to challenge the cabins?¡±

    ¡°Well he has been training under Demoness Ming Lu, so he should have an understanding of the power of the cabins.¡±

    ¡°Even so he¡¯s only been training for less than a month. And a month before he wasn¡¯t even in the Mortal Rank.¡±

    Conversations bellowed out everywhere and soon a crowd was following Akata towards the tenth cabin. Akata didn¡¯t care about them, right now his goal was to get strong enough to challenge Ming Lu and then the number 1 spot. After that he planned to leave this place.

    ¡°Once I leave I¡¯ll have the whole world as my training ground to get stronger. I¡¯ll truly be a free cultivator that can grow stronger than anyone under the sun.¡± Akata had a smile on his face and his red eyes flashed with desire. His black spiky hair hung to his neck and flew with the wind. He truly looked as free as could be.

    It took around a little more than half an hour to get to the tenth cabin, and that was when Akata started running towards it with a fighting will. Of course he wasn¡¯t using his full speed or the Shadowfeet technique otherwise the time would have been way shorter. But even then he left some of the disciples in the dust, and others had to use their full speed to stay with him. Only a few didn¡¯t have to go all out to keep up with his speed.

    ¡°What speed?!¡±

    ¡°No wonder he is able to stay alive in Misty Forest, if I had that speed I would train in there too.¡±

    The disciples following him were truly astonished. It must be said that Akata wasn¡¯t even in the Mortal Rank until a month ago, so everybody was faster than him. Now though he was leaving most of the disciples in the dust.

    Soon he arrived at the tenth cabin¡¯s arena. The tenth cabin¡¯s arena was the only one to possess a bell to challenge the tenth ranked person, as this was the only person anyone could challenge of the ten ranks. Akata rung the bell signalling that he wanted to challenge the tenth ranked person of the sect.

    The rest of the disciples stood on the side of the arena waiting for the tenth ranked person to come out. They were all waiting to see what would happen. It is true that Akata was the weakest among them just a month ago, but then he went through so much. He was the target of an assassination and then survived, he became the apprentice of Demoness Ming Lu, and he even trained in Misty Forest twice! At their level of cultivation they weren¡¯t able to assess what cultivation Akata was at but they knew he wasn¡¯t weak anymore.

    But even if he went through all of that, he has only been in the Mortal Rank for a month. And he was still challenging the tenth strongest person in the sect. No matter how you looked at it this duel was going to be a wild one. Everybody stood for anticipation for the duel that was going to take place in a few moments.

    Soon the door to the tenth cabin opened. Out of the door walked a young boy about 15-16 years old. He wore a grey robe and his face was covered, but you could still see his cold blue eyes. He didn¡¯t look to be much a cultivator more like a thief instead. His gaze scanned the crowd until his eyes fell onto the person that rung the bell. In a rough voice he said a single word, ¡°You?¡±

    When the man stepped out the crowd went into an uproar. Voices and conversations flew out into the air as questions and comments floated out of their mouths.

    ¡°So Fang Zuwa is at the tenth rank right now? This should be his 12th time then. I honestly think he loses his battles on purpose to get kicked out.¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s actually pretty strong, he even made it to the seventh rank before. How did he get all the way back down?¡±

    The young man didn¡¯t pay any attention to the crowd and solely focused his attention on Akata. At first he thought this was a joke but then he saw the fighting will and resolve in Akata¡¯s burning eyes. He couldn¡¯t help but be amazed by the passion from Akata.

    He suddenly spoke in a loud clear voice, ¡°I accept your challenge.¡± The voice cut off all conversations as the surrounding disciples focused their attention on the sparring platform.

    Fang Zuwa stepped onto the platform and made his way to stand in front of Akata. He didn¡¯t walk slowly yet he didn¡¯t walk fast either. He walked so that he would save time in analyzing Akata further yet not waste time either. Soon he was in front of Akata. He didn¡¯t put on an intimidating air as he was curious. But then he sighed and shook his head.

    ¡°I can¡¯t see through your cultivation level at all. Tell me¡­ what level is your cultivation at?¡± He said this in a curious tone that was sincere.

    Akata looked deeply at him, he was actually surprised by how kind this man was being. He then spoke his next words clear and loud so everyone could hear. ¡°I¡¯m at the Mortal Rank Grade 2.¡±

    Fang Zuwa simply nodded and said no further words. They both readied themselves and the fighting will in both of them sparked to life rustling the air a bit. They then charged at each other ready to fight.

 Chapter 13: Akata Faces Fang Zuwa

    The crowd went into an uproar when they heard what level cultivation Akata was at. Akata¡¯s cultivation wasn¡¯t amazing, but his speed of progression was. Some of them have been cultivating for years and were still at the level of a Mortal Rank Grade 1 cultivator. Yet Akata merely spent a month stepping through into the Mortal Rank and then breaking through into Grade 2. This was absurd for most of them, and unacceptable for the rest.

    ¡°It must be because Demoness Ming Lu is his master. If I had her as my master then I could be that strong too. Heck I could be stronger than this guy.¡±

    ¡°Exactly he doesn¡¯t deserve a teacher like Demoness Ming Lu. Why would she choose such a weakling to mentor?¡±

    ¡°If he advanced two levels under her guidance then I could¡¯ve probably broken through to Grade 3 by now.¡±

    Outbursts and the like instantly surfaced from the surrounding crowd. They were in an uproar and didn¡¯t try to calm their emotions.

    Akata didn¡¯t plan on this to happen. He just wanted others to admire his strength and how fast he got it. He wasn¡¯t expecting them to think that it was all Ming Lu¡¯s doing that brought him here. In truth it really was just himself that got him here. Ming Lu just taught him a technique that could¡¯ve killed him, and told him to train in Misty Forest. Akata did all the rest of the work. He was at a loss but then put the matter to the back of his head as he focused on the incoming Fang Zuwa.

    Fang Zuwa and Akata were closing in on each other. Fang Zuwa flashed an incantation gesture and pointed towards Akata. Time seemed to slow down as a gray light covered his finger. ¡°Corrosive Will.¡± Fang Zuwa spoke two words and then the gray light shot towards Akata. The light transformed into a needle-like beam as it headed straight for Akata with an amazing speed.

    Akata was astonished by the speed of the beam of light. He barely had time to dodge to the side but even then the needle beam scraped his left arm, causing blood to drip down. Akata didn¡¯t stop though as he headed straight for Fang Zuwa. He pulled his arm back and formed a fist which he unleashed towards Fang Zuwa¡¯s chest. Fang Zuwa put his arms up to block the punch and was sent flying back about ten meters.

    ¡°Woah his body strength is so tough.¡±

    ¡°Since when did Akata train his body to this level? He¡¯s like a monster.¡±

    Akata felt pleased with this strike of his. In truth this was Akata¡¯s first actual evenly matched fight with another person. All his other fights have been with people much stronger than himself. The feeling of finally fighting someone who he was actually on level with caused his blood to burn and a fierce fighting will erupted. His red eyes showed with a desire to fight this match.

    Fang Zuwa eventually regained his balance. A streak of blood dripped out the corner of his mouth as he stopped himself. His eyes were calm as he looked toward Akata but inside he was greatly surprised. ¡°The strength of his body is too great! I can¡¯t fight him in a head-on confrontation otherwise it¡¯ll be my defeat. Looks like I have to wait for my daoist magic to take effect and fight from a longer range.¡± Fang Zuwa eyed Akata with calm eyes that didn¡¯t give away his thoughts to anybody. Suddenly he saw the intense fighting will of Akata erupt, nobody could see it but under his covered face a slight smile surfaced. ¡°It¡¯s time.¡± With that he rushed towards Akata.

    Akata¡¯s fighting will burst out with even more ferocity when Fang Zuwa started rushing towards him. Akata didn¡¯t wait for Fang Zuwa to close in on him, as he took a step forward and struck out with a fist. But then the next thing that happened caught him slightly off guard. ¡°Wait, is he actually going to strike with his own fist? I¡¯m sure he realized that my body strength is way greater than his, why would he choose to fight me head on?¡± Akata mused to himself as he saw Fang Zuwa approaching not with an incantation gesture, but a fist of his own.

    Akata gave it no more thought as he was determined to show his strength not to the other disciples but to himself. To prove that he could become strong if he put his mind to it.

    The two figures quickly closed in on each other and both of them struck out with a fist.

    ¡°What is Fang Zuwa thinking? He should have realized it¡¯s dangerous to go against Akata with just body strength.¡±

    ¡°Even I wouldn¡¯t go head-on against that fist strike of Akata.¡±Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions.

    ¡°It looks like Fang Zuwa is planning on getting kicked back out of the Cabins.¡±

    The crowd was just as confused as Akata. Only a few disciples kept quiet and watched on with full focus. These disciples weren¡¯t ordinary; each one was qualified to hold a spot in the Cabins. They all each had something in common too, and that was that each one of them had gone against Fang Zuwa in a spar. That wasn¡¯t the only thing, they each also had experienced the power of his Corrosive Will daoist magic.

    Akata¡¯s will to fight surged as he put his power into his punch. The two fists collided and astonishingly, both figures were pushed back. The scene caused the disciples eyes to go wide. They couldn¡¯t believe that Fang Zuwa¡¯s body strength was evenly matched with Akata¡¯s.

    Akata was even more astonished than them. He could tell that Fang Zuwa¡¯s strength was still the same as it had been before, yet he was still able to push him back. Akata felt very confused on the matter. ¡°His strength is still the same yet he was able to match me? Could it be that my strength was reduced? But it doesn¡¯t feel like my strength went down even a bit.¡± Akata thought and thought but he couldn¡¯t come up with a reason for what just happened. He charged towards Fang Zuwa albeit this time a bit more cautious.

    As soon as Fang Zuwa steadied himself he charged towards Akata. The two clashed again and they exchanged a series of blows. As the blows were exchanged Akata¡¯s fighting will rose higher and higher, but he could also feel that Fang Zuwa was starting to pressure him a little more. All the while they were fighting, Akata kept on thinking of what could make Fang Zuwa stronger. It was then that he remembered their first exchange.

    ¡°It must have been when he unleashed that weird daoist magic. Even though it barely hit me, it must¡¯ve still had an effect that caused it to reduce my strength without me knowing it. For some reason I¡¯m not able to let loose my full power and I need to find out why.¡± Akata instantly came up with an idea to get the information he needed.

    Akata shot back and began to study the inside of his body with his sense. He didn¡¯t know why but ever since he obtained his red rune he was able to sense his body on a closer level and that enabled him to enhance it at a faster and more efficient rate than others. He immediately sensed a gray aura flowing through his body. He focused on it for a moment and then came to an understanding of it.

    ¡°So it is a daoist magic that causes my fighting will to decrease. Without the desire to fight your power will thus be greatly reduced. It would also be hard to detect given that when you¡¯re fighting the will to fight is always present on a mental level so you won¡¯t notice it changing on a physical level. Interesting.¡±

    Akata was instantly able to deduce what was happening inside of his own body with the help of the red rune. Still retreating backwards he couldn¡¯t think of a way to combat this technique.

    ¡°This is a perfect ability with little flaws. If it hits you then, given enough time, you¡¯ll succumb to the effects of it. But even if he has this kind of power, nothing will stop me from winning this fight and proving to myself that I am the strongest.¡±

    As Akata thought these words he suddenly stopped retreating. Fang Zuwa was actually getting really annoyed by Akata¡¯s retreating figure. When he saw that Akata stopped retreating he immediately increased his speed and rushed in, not wanting to give Akata the time to think of backing out again. He flashed an incantation gesture and pointed towards Akata where he said ¡°Cloudy Binding.¡± This was actually a technique from the Red Cloud Sect. The sect didn¡¯t have many techniques since it wasn¡¯t a normal sect. Most people received their magic from their clan, or their enlightenment, or even luck.

    Cloudy Binding was a low level technique that anyone with a cultivation base of Mortal Rank Grade 1 can learn. It trapped the opponent in an illusory cloud that wasn¡¯t difficult to break out of at all. Although it was good for trapping not many people took the effort to learn it. That was because it could only trap a person for the space of about a single breath at most. And at their level, they couldn¡¯t do much with a single breaths worth of time.

    A red mist rose up around Akata¡¯s figure and he felt like his blood was locked down. ¡°This must be the Cloudy Binding technique that traps an opponent for a single breath. It stops the blood for a moment, causing the person to suddenly become still. But, I won¡¯t allow anything to happen to me if I don¡¯t want it to! Even if this lasts only a single breath, I won¡¯t let it stop me for that long.¡± A powerful force sprung up around Akata as his red eyes glowed and a small wind swirled around his body. A fierce fighting will surged up and it was powerful enough to even cause Fang Zuwa¡¯s face to change.

    The Cloudy Binding didn¡¯t even have time to restrict him as it was broken apart and demolished. Not only did that happen but what happened next caused Fang Zuwa to stop in his tracks. That was because Akata¡¯s fighting will even caused his Corrosive Will to retreat.

    ¡°This is impossible. The more fighting will my opponent builds the more effective my Corrosive Will is. So how is he breaking my ability with his will to fight?!¡± Fang Zuwa was so astonished that he actually yelled his last sentence out. When they heard this, the faces of the disciples that had faced Fang Zuwa before changed greatly. They were even more astounded than Fang Zuwa was himself. That was because they had witnessed his ability first hand and felt the helplessness of it. They knew that it was virtually impossible to break free of Corrosive Will once it made contact with you. Some of their faces showed disbelief, others showed admiration, and the others were envious.

    Akata could be said to be the first and only person on Fang Zuwa¡¯s level to break free from his technique the way he did. Back in his clan Fang Zuwa obviously knew some clanmates that could break this technique, but never had anyone decided to do it by causing the magic to overload.

    ¡°It can¡¯t be. It just can¡¯t be! How is his fighting will so great that it can even overcome my clan¡¯s magic?!¡± Fang Zuwa¡¯s mind started to fill with madness, anger, and disbelief. As of this moment he couldn¡¯t stand Akata. He took pride in his clan¡¯s magic, and to have it broken by someone who was the weakest in the sect a month ago, he couldn¡¯t allow it. Right now he just wanted to demolish Akata. Killing intent even started to form in his eyes and aura.

    The red rune in Akata¡¯s body was spinning rapidly and was blazing radiantly. Akata didn¡¯t notice that though as he was solely focused on fighting Fang Zuwa. He was finally going to take this seriously.

    ¡°I can sense killing intent coming from him. I guess he didn¡¯t like the fact that I broke through his magic. Well if he¡¯s out to kill me then I obviously won¡¯t stand by letting him do as he pleases.¡± As Akata mused to himself his crimson red eyes flashed for a second, they seemed to be resonating with the red rune inside of him. Surprisingly his fighting will surged even higher, building an invisible pressure around him.

    ¡°If he¡¯s going to go all out, then there is no reason for me to hold back anymore either.¡± Akata took a step forward and the pressure intensified greatly. This time he consciously controlled the red rune inside of him. His eyes were now flashing faster and the glow in them didn¡¯t fade. He pulled his arm back and then he¡­ struck out.

 Chapter 14: Iâ€™ll Show You My True Power

    Akata was some distance away from Fang Zuwa which caused people to be at a loss for why he struck out so far away. Fang Zuwa wasn¡¯t considering the matter as he rushed in for the kill. He flashed an incantation gesture and was getting ready to unleash it when all of a sudden a powerful force caused him to abruptly stop in place and threw him back. Blood sprayed from his mouth as he was forced back 20 meters. His eyes were still cold and he was still building killing intent but he was secretly shocked.

    Exclamations and shouts immediately surfaced from the crowd.

    ¡°What was that? Did Akata unleash some type of daoist magic?¡±

    ¡°But I didn¡¯t feel any cultivation base ripples coming from it.¡±

    ¡°That blow was not a type of daoist magic or any type of magic for that matter. It came directly from his body strength.¡±

    The voice of the person who spoke this echoed out throughout the crowd, instantly silencing them. When the disciples heard the voice they all turned around and greeted the person with a bow and clasped hands. That was because the person that just spoke was a venerated figure in the sect. It was none other than Second Elder.

    She continued to speak on.

    ¡°Raise your heads disciples and learn what cultivating the body can bring you. I¡¯ll even let you in on a little something.¡± She started to speak with a chuckle as she continued on. ¡°Body cultivation is actually very important. Most of you hold it in contempt along with the people who practice it. But did you know that First Elder is a body cultivator?¡±

    When Second Elder finished speaking her sentence a figure suddenly materialised right beside her. It was none other than her twin brother, Third Elder. He then spoke out as to add on to what Second Elder had just said.

    ¡°None of you know the extent of First Elder¡¯s strength, so I¡¯ll even tell you secret. Second Elder and I, even when working together, can¡¯t beat First Elder even when he doesn¡¯t use magic.¡± Even though Third Elder was a proud guy, when he talked of his defeat by the hands of First Elder, he held nothing but admiration and praise in his mind, body, and spirit.

    All the disciples were greatly astonished by what they just heard. It must be known that in this era, not even including them, even bigger sects and clans would hold body cultivation in contempt. It was seen as too hard to train in and the techniques available now weren¡¯t on the level where it could compete with magic. But to hear that Second AND Third Elder lose to First Elder who can just use his body to fight and beat them, caused the disciples minds to rethink many things. Some even made the choice to start cultivating their body as soon as his spar was over. And the one¡¯s who were already cultivating the body had the sense that they would instantly become more popular in the coming days.

    It was then that Second Elder spoke out again. ¡°For now focus on this fight,I¡¯m sure that it will leave you surprised and may even help you with your cultivation.¡± When she finished speaking, she, along with Third Elder, looked at the arena where Akata and Fang Zuwa were battling.

    Fang Zuwa was pushed back by the blast that came from Akata¡¯s fist and after falling back twenty meters he finally steadied himself. Now he was truly enraged. He didn¡¯t hold his killing intent back as he allowed for it to burst forth. His hands flashed an incantation as he bellowed out, ¡°Corrosive Will!¡± This time though he didn¡¯t aim for Akata but instead at himself.

    Fang Zuwa¡¯s aura instantly burst forth causing the pressure in the area to increase threefold. But it didn¡¯t stop there as it kept on increasing with each passing moment. Akata felt the intense pressure radiating from Fang Zuwa but he did not step back.

    Corrosive Will wasn¡¯t just an ability to take away the fighting will of an opponent, it was used to absorb the fighting will also. A person who cultivated Corrosive Will will have a strand of the ability always in their body, and when they used it on someone else that strand along with the other strand in the opponent will resonate and transfer the fighting will. But to actually use the fighting will was a different story. Doing so will result in the loss of sanity as you take in someone else''s will. This is why people didn¡¯t normally use it unless it was a last result. But Fang Zuwa was using it now.

    Fang Zuwa didn¡¯t stop as he shot forward while his energy was still increasing. Akata shot for him too as he wanted to clash. They spanned the distance of twenty meters in an instant. Fang Zuwa flashed an incantation sign as he unleashed another magic ability. ¡°I¡¯ll end you! Flashing Steps!¡± Fang Zuwa started to glow with a blinding light as his speed increased exponentially. He was upon Akata instantly and he let out a sweeping kick towards him.

    Akata, as soon as Fang Zuwa appeared in front of him, was surprised but didn¡¯t back up a single step. Instead he used his own speed skill Shadowfeet as his feet turned into a shadow and he burst with speed and let out a kick of his own. If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

    Fang Zuwa¡¯s face was filled with madness as he noticed Akata¡¯s sudden burst in speed and that he was also attacking. He knew he wasn¡¯t a match for Akata in terms of body cultivation so he wanted to get the upperhand by using a surprise method. When he saw Akata attack on his own he became even more enraged and flashed another incantation gesture. ¡°I will not be defeated by you! I¡¯ve spent years trying to perfect this daoist magic and now that I have I want to rise to the top now. So I can¡¯t lose anymore! Be prepared. Will Eruption!¡±

    If Corrosive Will is a technique that is used to gather fighting will in order to weaken the foe and transfer it between the caster and opponent, then Will Eruption is a technique that causes that gathered fighting will to explode out throughout the body and strengthen the caster. It causes everything in the body to wash over with fighting will and increase in strength exponentially. But in turn the caster will lose all sanity.

    Fang Zuwa¡¯s energy sky-rocketed as he pushed forward and still sent his kick towards Akata. The two hadn¡¯t stopped moving for a moment since they started charging towards each other. Soon they were in front of the other. Since the time it took for Fang Zuwa to stop being pushed back from Akata¡¯s blast and charge towards Akata a breath and a half had passed.

    Boom!

    The two kicked each other but neither of them were pushed back by the exchange. They didn¡¯t stop there as they then unleashed another kick, then a punch, and even started kneeing and elbowing each other.

    Bang! Bang! Boom!

    Each clash caused the air to vibrate and booms to ring out. In an instant they exchanged more than twenty moves. They were completely even when it came to body strength.

    Seeing that they were even caused both of them to increase in fury. Fang Zuwa having already lost his sanity became even more enraged and ferocious. Akata was lost in his desire to fight and he rotated his red rune even faster.

    Sometimes they would push off of each other but then immediately rush back to clash. Other times they would hold a clash but then separate and begin fighting once more. Blood oozed out of their mouths as they fought on. Their robes were ripped and their hair was disheveled. Although their appearances looked miserable, their eyes showed with a desire to fight.

    As they were fighting Akata mused to himself. ¡°It seems that he has lost his sanity. His moves are becoming repetitive and his power isn¡¯t increasing at a fast rate anymore. It looks like he has just about reached his limit.¡± Akata¡¯s eyes slowly stopped growing with the will to fight as he jumped back from Fang Zuwa. Fang Zuwa, although he lost his sanity, didn¡¯t chase after him. After gaining some distance Akata took the moment to speak.

    ¡°Seeing as you didn¡¯t chase after me it seems as if either your technique is wearing off or your body has reached its limit and you can gain some control of your consciousness. Either way you won¡¯t be able to keep this up. But since you have been an excellent opponent and have brought me many realizations I shall show you my true power.¡± Akata¡¯s red eyes then started to mix with a hint of gold.

    Second Elder who was still there noticed what Akata was about to do. She then slightly smiled and waved her hand towards the arena Akata and Fang Zuwa was on. Instantly a barrier was set up to block the sight from the surrounding disciples. The disciples were surprised and looked at Second Elder as if questioning her actions but they didn¡¯t dare voice them. Third Elder didn¡¯t look bothered as he could still see through the barrier.

    ¡°Akata thought that Fang Zuwa was worthy of seeing his true power after fighting him. So to be able to see his power you must face Akata with your own strength and let him unleash it. Until then just keep guessing at what it could be.¡± Third Elder was the one who spoke this and his voice was calm. On the other hand his eyes were glowing with passion and eagerness, although none of the disciples could see it, only Second Elder beside him noticed it.

    The disciples seeing the actions of Second Elder and hearing the words of Third Elder came to two realizations. One was that Akata was now a strong figure in the sect. The other was that he was being protected by the sect. The disciples were cultivators after all and therefore could come up with ideas towards this.

    ¡°It must have been when that meteor came down.¡±

    ¡°Akata was the last one to leave during that event, what could have happened?¡±

    ¡°Whatever happened, the sect is protecting him now so he must be important.¡±

    The disciples discussed things in low tones and came up with these conjectures. After discussing they looked towards the barrier. Although they couldn¡¯t see through it, they were just waiting to see what was going to happen when it was released.

    Akata and Fang Zuwa faced each other but neither of them made any advancements to the other. Fang Zuwa¡¯s eyes were still cold and his killing intent was still there. By now however his consciousness was now back by half. Akata looked at Fang Zuwa with his red and gold eyes and a blank face.

    ¡°Since you are my first opponent and also have brought me to new realizations regarding my combat I¡¯ll let you witness my true power.¡± Akata consciously rotated his golden rune in his soul region and lifted a finger and pointed it into the air. Slowly the ground began to crack and crumble as pieces of earth began to rise up. They gathered in the air above Akata¡¯s finger and clustered into a ball of rock. The rock was golden and it kept increasing in size. After a breath''s worth of time it was the size of a fingernail and the pressure radiating out from it caused the air to start cracking. Akata and the ball of rock was glowing with a golden light and exuded unbelievable pressure.

    Fang Zuwa, in his half sane mind, looked on with disbelief and his eyes went wide. He started panting and thinking of ways to face this power. But as his mind rushed through ideas he sunk to his knees and laughed bitterly.

    The pressure and power from that fingernail size of golden rock caused his mind to become clear and he regained all of his consciousness. He looked on at the rock and muttered to himself, ¡°There¡¯s no way I can beat that. This kind of power looks insignificant yet it makes me want to bow down to it just from its presence. Just what kind of power is this?¡±

    Akata could hear Fang Zuwa muttering to himself and shook his head. He then caused the golden rock to descend towards his finger where he tapped it and caused it to disperse. The golden rune stopped rotating in his soul region but Akata kept the golden light from dispersing. He wanted the appearance of a transcendent being. He didn¡¯t answer Fang Zuwa¡¯s question but instead asked his own. ¡°Do you¡­ think you can beat me?¡±

    Fang Zuwa didn¡¯t look flustered or humiliated from Akata¡¯s question in the least. Seeing Akata¡¯s figure with his red and gold eyes staring at him, and the golden light shining off of him, he shook his head and smiled calmly. ¡°I admit defeat.¡±

    The surrounding disciples couldn¡¯t see what was going on but they could feel the sudden immense pressure coming from the arena. They could also hear Akata and Fang Zuwa speaking to each other. Second Elder wanted for this to happen for two reasons. One was for the disciples to hear Fang Zuwa admit defeat on his own. And two was because she wanted the pressure to be able to expand out so it wouldn¡¯t crush Akata within the barrier.

    When Akata released his ability and Fang Zuwa admitted defeat Second Elder released the barrier. The remaining pressure inside the barrier instantly rushed out towards the disciples causing some of them to stumble backwards and even some to have blood ooze out of their mouths. They didn¡¯t though because they were focused on the Akata who was standing proud glowing with golden light, and Fang Zuwa who was kneeling on the ground.

 Chapter 15: Iâ€™ll Do It For You

    The golden light slowly faded from Akata as he stood there. The disciples thought he looked like a celestial being. Akata then turned around to face the crowd. On his face was a giant smile beaming with satisfaction and self confidence.

    Third Elder looked on then nodded his head as if approving. ¡°The tenth rank cabin match has been concluded. Kaminari Akata, the challenger, has defeated Fang Zuwa. Akata Kaminari shall now take the tenth cabin and become the tenth ranked disciple whereas Fang Zuwa is no longer ranked. If anyone wishes to face Akata Kaminari then they must wait a week.¡±

    When someone usually fought over the tenth cabin they would be allowed to recover for five days, but Akata was granted a week for recovery. This gave the disciples even more evidence that Akata was being protected. But then something out of the blue happened.

    ¡°That won¡¯t be necessary, I¡¯ll be challenging the ninth cabin right now.¡±

    Not even mentioning the disciples, even Third and Second Elder were astonished. They could tell how much energy Akata had used in his fight and that he had less than half of it left. They also knew he wasn¡¯t good with magic and his last technique left him physically and mentally drained. Especially since it was a technique that was far beyond his current capabilities.

    Second Elder was about to voice her thoughts but then stopped when she looked into Akata¡¯s eyes. What she saw was a fighting will that would not falter no matter how tired he was. She smiled wryly and then shook her head. ¡°If that is what he wants then so be it.¡± She didn¡¯t say this out loud but instead mentally said it to Third Elder.

    ¡°Sister are you sure about this? Akata is very much so worn out from the battle he was just in. And the competition only gets tougher as he progresses. I think we should have him rest for a little while before challenging the others.¡±

    ¡°I am sure about this. I know you can see the fighting will emanating from him and also his decisiveness. If he loses then he didn¡¯t have the capabilities to win and must work harder. Yet if he wins then he¡¯ll be that much closer to his goal. I feel it is good for him either way.¡±

    ¡°Even so what if he sustains any injuries from his next battle or even loses control of his magic? Wouldn¡¯t that be a bad thing?¡±

    Third and Second Elder were conversing mentally between each other. Second Elder gave a look of hesitation as she considered her brother''s words. Then she nodded.

    ¡°The only hard part is trying to get him to agree with recovering for a moment before challenging the ninth cabin.¡±

    ¡°Leave that to me.¡±

    Third Elder then took a step forward and appeared in front of Akata in the blink of an eye. Even though Third and Second Elders conversation seemed long, it was actually really quick. As soon as Akata finished speaking Third Elder was right in front of him. It caught him off guard but then he recovered and immediately bowed.

    ¡°Disciple greets Third Elder.¡±

    Third Elder nodded and then spoke out to Akata. He set up a barrier so that they would be the only one¡¯s who could hear what was being said. Of course that didn¡¯t apply to Second Elder though.

    ¡°Akata would it not be in your best interest to recover from this battle before challenging the ninth cabin. Why would you rush things?¡± At first Third Elder was just going to persuade Akata to wait on the match but when he saw the fighting will in his eyes he couldn¡¯t help but be amazed. He then asked the question as to find out why he would want to fight.

    ¡°Disciple would like to ask his own question.¡± Akata was extremely courteous towards Third Elder. Third Elder nodded his head. ¡°In the wild after you have fought a ferocious battle, does nature allow you to rest? I feel that life is just like the wilderness so I must treat my life like I am in the wild. Just because I win one battle and am tired doesn¡¯t mean that I get to take it easy. No, I must work that much harder so that eventually these small battles won¡¯t even have me waste the energy to blink an eyelid. If I rest then that means that my mind, body, and spirit has been defeated, and I will not allow for myself to be defeated. I will continue to win until the day that I choose to voluntarily take it easy. Until that day I will not lose.¡± Akata¡¯s eyes burned with a fierce passion and desire to fight. His words even caused his red rune to start to rotate.

    Third Elder was filled with astonishment. He couldn¡¯t believe the passion and fighting will inside of Akata. He was shocked and struck back by his words and determination. Second Elder was even more astonished. Even though she noticed the fighting will in Akata earlier she couldn¡¯t truly understand his feelings through his eyes alone. A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

    ¡°No wonder the blood essence rune resonates with him so greatly.¡± She muttered to herself.

    Both Third Elder and Second Elder were left speechless. How could they not let Akata fight this match now? They were suddenly at a loss of what to do to postpone his match. It was then that Third Elder came up with an idea.

    ¡°If that is what you wish then so be it. But how about you meditate on your previous battle first though. The truly strong people know how to gain insights from fights and use them to improve themselves. If you truly want to get stronger then this is something you must also follow. I¡¯m pretty sure that you have gained something from your fight with Fang Zuwa, so why don¡¯t you meditate on your strengths and weaknesses to help yourself?¡±

    Akata looked at Third Elder and had a helpless look on his face. He could tell that Third Elder wanted him to rest some. How could he turn down an Elder from his sect? After thinking of it he nodded his head in agreement and clasped hands. ¡°Disciple will follow your lead and meditate on my previous battle with Fang Zuwa.¡±

    Akata didn¡¯t go inside the cabin but instead sat down where he was and closed his eyes to start meditating. Third Elder wasn¡¯t surprised by this, he waved his hand and set up a barrier around him. He turned around and voiced to the crowd.

    ¡°Akata will be in meditation. When he emerges he will immediately challenge the ninth cabin. Until that time nobody is to disturb him.¡± With that Third Elder vanished. Following suit Second Elder gave a laugh and also vanished. The disciples then went into an uproar.

    ¡°Akata is now ranked tenth in the sect!¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s way stronger than me, and yet I¡¯ve been training longer than he¡¯s been alive.¡±

    ¡°After he¡¯s done meditating he¡¯s going to challenge the ninth cabin.¡±

    ¡°Does that mean he¡¯s going to try and challenge all the cabins?¡±

    The disciples dispersed and took their conversations with them. News spread throughout the sect like wildfire and soon everyone was talking about Akata. Even the top three ranked disciples were talking about the matter of Akata defeating Fang Zuwa and challenging the rest of the cabins.

    Third Cabin

    ¡°I can¡¯t believe Akata has the strength to make it into the cabins. I also heard that his body strength alone was enough to overcome Fang Zuwa. Is it true that he¡¯ll challenge all the cabins?¡± Ming Xu said this is a concerned tone. Her voice quivering with each word she spoke.

    ¡°I say let him. At least I¡¯ll have a reason to pummel him into the ground. Besides he¡¯s only a trifling Grade 2. He¡¯ll need more than that to fight me.¡± Xi Fe spoke with utter confidence and derision. By now the injuries he had sustained from Ming Lu were just about completely healed. ¡°What kind of training did your sister put him through to get him from no cultivation base at all to Grade 2 in only two or so months?¡± When he said the word sister he had shivers go down his spine.

    ¡°I¡¯ve never heard of any kind of training like that. Not even my sister advanced that fast.¡±

    ¡°Xi Fe. Ming Xu. If Akata does make it to your cabins then I want you all to kill him. Right now he is being protected by the sect and if he rises to the top then it will make our plans go less smoothly. Xiun Wu suddenly spoke up after idly listening to the conversation.

    ¡°You want us to¡­ kill him?¡± Xi Fe and Ming Xu both spoke out as Wu Xiun finished speaking. Not to mention if they had the capabilities to kill him, but the punishment that would be involved would be great.

    ¡°Yes I do. Not to worry though, if you don¡¯t think you can do it in secret then challenge him to a death match. I¡¯m sure he will accept the conditions considering our history.¡± Xiun Wu was calm and collected as he spoke. He even spoke with indifference, as if killing somebody in a sect was just like killing a chicken.

    Xi Fe and Ming Xu both hesitated for a moment. Xi Fe, after a few breaths worth of time, finally shook his head and agreed. ¡°I¡¯ll follow your lead.¡± Ming Xu on the other hand was still hesitating on the matter.

    ¡°Go back to your cabins and prepare for Akata. I¡¯m sure he will progress through at a fast rate so it won¡¯t be long until you meet him.¡± Xiun Wu said cooly. His face not giving away any of his inner thoughts.

    Ming Xu and Xi Fe both nodded then went to their own cabins.

    As they sped off Ming Xu suddenly heard a voice. She stopped and turned around to look this person in the eye with glaring hatred. It was none other her older sister Ming Lu. ¡°Why did you call me?¡± She said with clenched teeth.

    ¡°Whoa whoa whoa there Little Xu Xu, I can¡¯t even say hello to my little sister?¡± Ming Lu put on a bashful look and seemed as if she might even cry.

    Ming Xu continued to look at Ming Lu in a glaring fashion. Eventually Ming Lu gave up the shy face and attitude and put on a bored look. ¡°You¡¯re no fun anymore. I remember when you used to look up to me and admired how I was. You followed everything I did just so you can end up like I would. But now look, you¡¯re following a low-life cultivator from this Mystic Empire. I¡¯m holding myself back just so that you¡¯ll be able to follow me in case you change your mind. Why do you follow someone like Xiun Wu?¡± Ming Lu was very concerned over her little sister. She cared deeply for her and wouldn¡¯t let anything or anyone wrong her.

    ¡°Xiun Wu is a person who will change this empire and eventually rule it. Not only that but the resources and background he has is not simple either. It would be idiocy not to follow him. Our clan may be strong and powerful but right here and now, I believe in Xiun Wu.¡± Ming Xu spoke proudly and put on a praising demeanor.

    Ming Lu looked at Ming Xu closely in a serious manner then shook her head. ¡°I heard about Xiun Wu¡¯s plan to kill Akata. Let me just tell you this, he is being protected by the sect. And judging by how little everyone knows about this sect, killing him could bring disaster. Plus, and most importantly, he is not that simple either. I¡¯ll have you know that if you think that his greatest strength is his physical aptitude then you¡¯re mistaken. His mental capabilities are far more fearsome. To put it simply, nobody below the third cabin is a match for him, including yourself.¡±

    Ming Lu shook her head once more and then turned around to leave. Ming Xu was left standing there thinking of the words she just heard. She suddenly yelled out to her sister. ¡°He¡¯s only at Grade 2! No matter how strong his mental ability or physical ability is, he can¡¯t match up to Xiun Wu!¡± Ming Xu looked desperate as if trying her best to cover for Xiun Wu.

    Ming Lu kept on walking away. Only when she was out of sight did she speak, ¡°Of course he can, he even has the ability to surpass Jiandan Fuza.¡±

    Ming Xu was left standing there with a blank face. She eventually turned around and went straight to her cabin, not making any stops on the way. When she finally got there she sat down cross legged. Her mind was running through many things. Finally she let out a long breath and cleared her mind. ¡°I¡¯ll do it for you.¡± Then she closed her eyes.

 Chapter 16: I Wonâ€™t Retreat

    Akata sat in the arena meditating. By now everyone had left, even Fang Zuwa who had packed his stuff and moved into one of the dorms in the sect. Akata was reviewing the battle he just went through in order to gain insights and improve himself better. He studied every single movement he and Fang Zuwa made, calculated how much energy each movement drained, and then thought of a way to make it more efficient. The whole process would be extremely draining to anyone else, but to Akata it was nothing. His mental strength was far superior to his physical strength.

    Not only was he analyzing every minute detail of his battle, but he was simultaneously connecting with nature. If anybody else tried this they would put themselves into a coma. Akata sat analyzing the battle and connecting with nature at the same time.

    After sitting for a while he suddenly came to a realization. ¡°Connecting with nature keeps my energy calm and therefore allows me to use less energy. If I¡¯m able to connect with nature while I fight then I could save much more energy and fight for longer also.¡± After this train of thought Akata opened his eyes and stood up.

    ¡°Well, the only way I would be able to do that is with repeated battles and trying it out in combat. So I guess it¡¯s finally time I fight.¡± His eyes radiated with an intense will to fight. He looked off into the distance in the direction of the ninth cabin and then dashed off.

    As he was running towards the ninth cabin some of the surrounding disciples caught a glimpse of him. News then began to spread that Akata was on the move.

    ¡°Akata is finally challenging the ninth cabin!¡±

    ¡°Quickly, let¡¯s head over there so we can see the whole thing.¡±

    Word spread fast and soon many disciples headed for the ninth cabin.

    ¡°Wow, there¡¯s already a crowd here?¡± Akata thought to himself as he was approaching the arena of the ninth cabin. Before he had even arrived a crowd of tens of people had already gathered to watch the battle. ¡°Might as well give them a show.¡± Akata stepped on the arena and rung the bell in order to signal that he was challenging the ninth cabin.

    Of course he didn¡¯t have to as the ninth ranked disciple was already waiting for him. When Akata stepped on the arena the door to the ninth cabin had already begun to open. Out stepped a boy about 17 years old in a brown robe. When you looked at him the first thing you would notice is how perfectly round he is. The next thing you would notice is the piece of chicken in his hand.

    ¡°Yo yo yo *munch munch* how yer doin¡¯ Akata? I ain¡¯t think yer was gon¡¯ be her¡¯ for a while *munch munch*.¡±

    When Akata looked at the ninth ranked disciple he couldn¡¯t help but lose his appetite. ¡°Yeah yeah I¡¯m fine. Just got done meditating that¡¯s all.¡± Akata smiled and laughed wryly as he spoke attempting to sound as comfortable as possible. ¡°I have come to challenge you Huihe Ji.¡±

    ¡°Yeppums! I hear¡¯ you had gon¡¯ and made a place in the ol¡¯ cabins. Even beat that darn Fang Zuwa. I almost couldn¡¯t believe it. I rememba¡¯ when...¡± As he spoke Huihe Ji¡¯s eyes got wider and wider. He spoke on and on for a good while eventually remembering why Akata had come. ¡°... and by then yer had gotten yer first win. Now hol¡¯ on just a moment, ain¡¯t yer ¡®posed to be fightin¡¯ me?¡±

    Helplessness could be seen on the faces of everyone present. Huihe Ji was known to be a talker within the sect and he could go on for hours at a time. When Akata and the rest of the disciples finally heard these words they perked up and looks of thankfulness could be seen on their faces. Akata immediately nodded his head and spoke out almost yelling. ¡°Yes! Yes! I came over to challenge you.¡±

    ¡°Alrighty then, why ye¡¯ ain¡¯t just say so?¡± Huihe Ji nodded his head and then readied himself. Akata didn¡¯t answer as he knew that responding would give rise to another conversation. He too nodded his head and readied himself into position.

    The crowd started getting enlivened at the sight of the match finally about to start. It was now sunset and the winds were crisp. The blades of grass waved in the air and the leaves on the trees followed suit. The clouds looked like wisps against the orange tinted sky.

    Akata let out a deep breath as he readied himself. He knew his opponent wasn¡¯t simple when it came to fighting. He started to rotate his red rune in his soul region. He was going to take this battle seriously from the beginning.

    Huihe Ji looked on at Akata readying himself and he let out a sigh. ¡°I ain¡¯t never think I was gon¡¯ battle ye¡¯ in me life.¡± He mused to himself, closed his eyes, and then shook his head. Then his eyes snapped open and they showed with bloodlust. His eyes were darker and his aura changed dramatically. Almost as soon as he opened his eyes his body started getting thinner until he was skinny. His black hair started to grow longer until it reached his lower back. He now looked completely different from before.Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

    ¡°The match is finally beginning!¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s Huihe Ji¡¯s Gluttonous Sword Spirit skill. By eating and absorbing the spiritual energy from food he is able to use it to get stronger.¡±

    ¡°If he could just break through into Grade 3 he could make it into top five no problem.¡±

    Huihe Ji clapped his hands together and slowly pulled them apart. As he did a scraping noise could be heard like metal rubbing against each other. As his hands pulled apart a black beam of light was forming, until it reached the length of a meter. The beam of light was pitch black and when it reached a meter he grabbed the end of it and it took on a more physical form, though it still looked more illusory.

    Huihe Ji stood there with an illusory black sword in one hand and a bloodlust aura radiating off of him. He looked ever much so like a sword immortal. He stared intently at Akata.

    Akata could feel the pressure coming from Huihe Ji. The glare coming from him felt like swords stabbing into his body. ¡°What a strong sword intent. I never faced Huihe Ji before so I never felt his sword intent before, but now, especially since it is directed at me, it is astonishing.¡± Akata couldn¡¯t help but be amazed. ¡°If he is just ranked ninth how powerful are the other disciples?¡±

    Akata then gave it no more thought as he cleared his mind. His eyes started to beam with a fighting will. He was eager to find out how strong the other disciples of his sect were. The red rune in his soul region started rotating faster as he thought about the upcoming fights he was going to be in.

    Huihe Ji saw the fighting intent in Akata and nodded his head. ¡°Good. Akata see if ye¡¯ can take my attack.¡± Huihe Ji lifted his sword into the air to point straight upwards. Then he slashed downwards in the direction of Akata. A beam of black sword light was produced and it went straight to Akata.

    ¡°I need to get myself a weapon if I am to fight others. I can¡¯t always rely on my body alone.¡± Akata looked on at the approaching sword light and pulled his fist back and then punched out towards it. The punch caused the air to vibrate and create a wind blast that aimed at the sword light. The two projectiles met in midair and collided.

    Boom!

    The collision caused the air to explode from the pressure. Dust flew up into the air blocking the vision of the surrounding disciples. Nobody could see the two figures standing on the arena. Soon the dust started clearing and what could be seen was that Akata and Huihe Ji were still standing in the same place they had been. Neither of them moved an inch.

    Their faces were calm but their eyes showed different feelings. One showed a feeling of utter astonishment and surprise while the other had a radiance willing to fight.They looked calmly at each other and didn¡¯t speak. After a moment both took a step at the same time and were right in front of each other.

    Huihe Ji slashed out with his black sword towards Akata¡¯s throat. Akata quickly leaned back barely avoiding the sword. He then kicked out with his foot towards Huihe Ji¡¯s chest attempting to counterattack. Huihe Ji wielded his sword to have the handle block the kick. He then switched the hand the sword was in and stabbed out with the blade. Akata fell back on his hands and twirled his body to kick the sword to the side, as soon as he kicked it he jumped to his feet and sent a punch out. Huihe Ji seeing the sword was kicked, twirled his own body in the direction it was kicked giving the sword momentum as he wielded it to strike a sweeping blow from down to up.

    Huihe Ji spun around once to give his sword momentum. He now held the sword with two hands. The blade part was down and it was rising in the air, as if he was going to Akata in half with a slanted strike.

    Akata had just come off the ground and was sending out a punch towards Huihe Ji. He was rotating his red rune and his fighting intent was rising. He saw the black blade coming but he was not going to retreat from it.

    Likewise Huihe Ji saw the fist approaching him but he wasn¡¯t going to edge away or try to dodge it either. This was a battle of pure strength and pride. If you retreated then it meant that you''d lose. If you were the first to fall then it meant that you''d lose. If you showed any kind of weakness then it meant that you¡¯d lose.

    The sword was gaining speed as it went along and a black sword beam was trailing behind it. He was using his full power to fight against Akata. On the other hand Akata¡¯s fist was pushing the air away, forming a cone around his hand as it went straight towards Huihe Ji. The two were moving extremely fast and were holding nothing back.

    Boom!

    The two attacks landed on each other. Both Akata and Huihe Ji were pushed back by the blows they received. They both coughed up several mouthfuls of blood. Huihe Ji had a dent in his chest and he was holding it with great difficulty. Akata had a deep gash in his chest that was spilling blood.

    They looked deeply at each other not saying anything. Huihe Ji smiled and his sword faded away. Then he dropped to the ground and passed out. Akata smiled too and then did the same. They were both unconscious from the battle.

    The disciples were completely stunned with disbelief. Not only was so much power from these two shown, but the speed of the battle was inconceivable too. From the moment Huihe Ji sent out his first sword blow to the time they both dropped down only about 10 breaths had passed.

    Everyone was silent and looking at the stage with blank faces and various thoughts. Not a single word could be heard from the crowd. After a few breaths a sigh could be heard and Third Elder appeared on the stage. He waved his sleeve and Akata and Huihe Ji disappeared. Then he took a step and vanished.

    Only when Third Elder went away did noise come from the disciples.

    ¡°This battle¡­ was too¡­ inconceivable.¡±

    ¡°It went by too fast. How are we supposed to watch something like this?¡±

    ¡°All the ranked disciples are monsters.¡±

    Various emotions could be seen coming from the disciples. Feelings such as helplessness, admiration, fear, and eagerness. But if it was one thing they could all agree on. It was the fact that this battle was simply amazing!

    Some disciples sent word out to various places to spread the news. Some others however went back to training while others mediated on what they had just seen. The whole sect was lively and it seemed it wouldn''t calm down until the next big event.

    Red Cloud Sect Medicine Pavilion

    Third Elder appeared and swiped his sleeve sending out Akata and Huihe Ji. Huihe Ji was still unconscious but Akata managed to open his eyes to see Third Elder. He couldn¡¯t speak or move his body so he just looked.

    ¡°Don¡¯t do anything. Now is the time to heal your wounds. Although your wounds are more serious, you are in a better position than Huihe Ji. Given enough time you will make a full recovery on your own. Huihe Ji on the other hand needs some outside help. Knowing your mental capabilities and how much time you spent in meditation you could have ended that fight without even getting hit, I won¡¯t ask why you didn¡¯t but in the future be more careful.¡±

    When Third Elder finished speaking Akata closed his eyes and went back to being unconscious. His red rune started rotating when he did and a faint red glow could be seen coming from his body. His wound started visibly healing at a slow rate.

 Chapter 17: Do You Accept or Not

    Akata opened his eyes and found himself lying in a soft bed. He looked around to see the room he was in. It was simple actually. A brown wooden floor with wooden walls. There were two windows in the room along with a chimney. There was a fire in the chimney warming up the space. A table could be seen in the room and it was covered with a red cloth.

    Akata sat up from the bed and looked around more. Eventually he stood up and walked over to the table. On the table there was a letter.

    Akata Kaminari,

    After having defeated Huihe Ji you have become the ninth ranked disciple of the sect. Due to the battle you both received serious wounds, with Ji Huihe being in a worse condition. Due to this it will be a while until he is able to fully recover. Along with him you will not be allowed to duel right now. Use this time to meditate. Once you are fully recovered then you can challenge the eighth cabin.

    Third Elder

    Akata read the letter and silently thought to himself, ¡®It was pretty reckless of me to fight like that. Once I fully recover I¡¯ll go see Huihe Ji and then work on my battle strategies.¡¯ Akata went back to his bed and then sat down cross legged on top of it. He then closed his eyes and began to meditate.

    The world grew increasingly silent around Akata. He couldn¡¯t feel the outside world and was solely focused on recovering from his injuries. His mind eventually began to sense the red and golden runes inside of him. When he sensed them they flashed resplendently.

    ¡®Just what are these runes inside of my body? I can tell that they are important and are very useful to me in combat. The red rune increases my body strength substantially, this in turn helps me to fight people above my level of cultivation. The gold rune while it is a magic technique, it also seems to be able to do something else that I¡¯m unaware of.¡¯

    As Akata was studying himself and his capabilities, his body was healing at a visible rate. Two more hours passed by and the deep gash on his chest turned to little more than a scar. The speed of his healing was frightening to an extreme degree.

    ¡®My body should be at a well enough level for me to fight now. My mental strength is also about fully replenished. I think that I¡¯m ready to go fight for my place in the eighth cabin.¡¯ Akata had a smile on his face as he stood up and walked out of the room he was in.

    He stepped out the door and he saw a luscious green field in front of him. Flowers blanketed the field giving off a sweet aroma in the air. Akata took in a slow deep breath as he wanted to savor this scene in front of him. After about thirty breaths of standing there he opened his eyes and started to walk off. Not towards the eighth cabin but to the Medicine Pavilion. Of course he was going there to check up on Huihe Ji.

    Along the way other disciples saw him and gathered around to talk to him. Akata was becoming even more well known throughout the sect. Not as the weakest but as a competitor for the strongest.

    ¡°Yo, Akata how did you get so strong so fast? I won¡¯t accept that it was just Ming Lu¡¯s doing. Come on you can tell us.¡± One disciple said trying to coax Akata.

    ¡°Er¡­ umm¡­ I don¡¯t know I just trained in Misty Forest haha.¡± Akata¡¯s face was blushed. Since when were so many people interested in him for a good reason. Of course some of these people had bullied him, but even so he didn¡¯t want to make an enemy out of them, he wanted to prove to them that he could surpass them.

    After half a day finally made it to the Medicine Pavilion. The place was normal looking. The walls were laid with red bricks and it was surrounded by many plants. The only thing special about it was the aroma of medicinal plants wafting off of the building.

    The Medicine Pavilion served two purposes. One was to supply the disciples and Elders with pills and plants to help them cultivate or for other uses. The other use was to serve as a recuperating center for people of the sect who were injured badly.

    Akata stepped in and greeted the lady who was standing and organizing some pill bottles. The lady who ran the Medicine Pavilion was Seventh Elder. She was the weakest of the Elder¡¯s and in fact her strength was Mortal Rank Grade 9, one Grade lower than Sixth Elder who was at the Mortal Rank Grade 10. Although her strength was weak compared to the other Elders, she was respected because of her knowledge in the art of healing.

    Seventh Elder looked at Akata and smiled gently. ¡°You must be Kaminari Akata. I must say when I saw you come in the other day I didn¡¯t think you were going to make it, but as I look at you now it¡¯s like you were never injured in the first place. Truly a miracle, you must thank Second Elder for healing you personally. Ah! I almost forgot why you came haha. Huihe Ji is in room 3.¡± The lady gestured and pointed in the direction of the room. Akata nodded his head with a, ¡°thank you Seventh Elder..¡± and walked off.The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

    In the room Akata could see Huihe Ji sitting there cross legged with his eyes closed. He had a bandage wrapped around his chest with blood splotches in some places. His body was slightly pale but given enough time he would recover. His body was back to being round albeit just a bit thinner than previously. Also two empty plates could be seen beside his bed. Clearly he had just finished eating and went straight to meditation.

    Akata smiled and sat down nearby, He closed his eyes and spread his senses out. His nature energy spread out through the room giving Akata a mental picture of his environment. There he just waited.

    About three hours passed until a knock could be heard at the door. ¡°Huihe Ji your food is here.¡± It was Seventh Elder who ran the Medicine Pavilion. She came in the room and noticed Akata sitting there and gave a nod and smile.

    When the knock came both Akata and Huihe Ji opened their eyes. As soon as Huihe Ji opened his eyes the first person he saw was naturally Akata. They both looked at each other and then smiled. Soon they even began to laugh. Then the lady walked in.

    ¡°I¡¯ll just put your food right here for you.¡± She said.

    ¡°Mn. Thank you Seventh Elder.¡± Huihe Ji replied.

    After Seventh Elder left, Huihe Ji looked at Akata once more and began to speak. ¡°Akata¡­ I wanna to thank yer¡¯ fo¡¯ that battle. It really helped me to see the faults in my fighting style. If I fought like that outside of this here sect I would certainly be killed. Thanks to yer¡¯ I have the feeling that I will break through to Grade 3 soon.¡± Huihe Ji was sincere with his thanks.

    ¡°No no. I must thank you for helping me out in that fight. While I¡¯m not on the verge of a breakthrough I have gained a lot through the insights of our battle. I¡¯ll be challenging the eighth cabin soon so once you fully recover you have to rise in rank in order to fight me again.¡± Akata gave a broad smile and said happily.

    ¡°Yessum! You best believe that I¡¯ll fight you again haha.¡± Huihe Ji was happy too and lightly laughed. ¡°Once I get out I¡¯ll surely rise in rank fast. I can tell that yer¡¯ got somethin¡¯ special goin¡¯ on. Yer¡¯ rise in strength is weird and you will surely reach rank one in the sect. I can¡¯t wait to see that day.¡± Huihe Ji spoke calmly as slowly as if he was some old wise man.

    Akata thought it was weird to see Huihe Ji like this but he didn¡¯t think anything of it. He nodded his head and said his thanks. He then got up and turned to leave. Huihe Ji smiled on until he left where his smile vanished to be replaced with somberness.

    ¡°If you would have told him the truth he would have been devastated.¡± A voice came out of the corner of the room.

    ¡°I know Third Elder¡­ that is why I ain¡¯t want to.¡± Huihe Ji closed his eyes and let out a long breath.

    ¡°No matter, eventually he¡¯ll gain the strength to control himself so that nobody else will get hurt. Until then I¡¯ll put a seal on you to make sure that your injury doesn¡¯t spread further. I¡¯ll tell everyone in the sect that it may be a while until you are able to fight again.¡± Third Elder appeared by the wall and looked out the window.

    ¡°Thank you Third Elder.¡± Huihe Ji closed his eyes and began to meditate again.

    Akata didn¡¯t hear any of this. He made his way out of the Medicine Pavilion and towards the eighth cabin. ¡®I have to get stronger to make sure that Huihe Ji isn¡¯t disappointed.¡¯ Akata held a smile on his face the whole way. As he got closer to the cabin his urge to fight grew greater and greater. By the time he actually made it to the cabin his fighting intent was affecting the grass near him, making it sway vigorously.

    Of course a crowd was following him to the cabin and when they finally made it they were all rowdy. Akata rang the bell to signal that he was challenging the eighth cabin.

    ¡°This cabin belongs to Xiao Pao. He¡¯s at Grade 2.¡±

    ¡°I heard he cultivates some bizarre daoist magic.¡±

    Conversation spread out from the disciples as they waited for the Xiao Pao to appear. Soon the door opened and out stepped a youth with white frizzy hair. He wore a silver silk robe that looked wrinkled and slept in.

    Rubbing his eyes he yawned and said, ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± The disciples looked on and smiled wryly. Unsure of what to say they all looked at Akata who didn¡¯t look any better off than them. He scratched the top of his head and cleared his throat.

    ¡°I came to challenge you Xiao Pao to a duel for your rank. Do you accept?¡± Akata spoke clearly as his voice echoed out towards Xiao Pao.

    Xiao Pao looked deeply at him with his eyes squinted as if trying to make out who this person was. After a breath or two he said, ¡°You don¡¯t look like Fang Zuwa and you can¡¯t be Huihe Ji unless¡­¡± Xiao Pao¡¯s eyes went wide as he thought of something. ¡°Did you finally lose weight?! So you finally tried that diet I suggested. Good for you.¡± Xiao Pao nodded his head in satisfaction as if contempt with his work. ¡°Even though you¡¯re more fit that doesn¡¯t mean you can beat me though Huihe Ji. Mhm.¡±

    ¡°Uhhh¡­¡± Akata was at a loss for what to say and stared blankly at Xiao Pao for a moment. It wasn¡¯t until someone from the crowd spoke that he came to his senses.

    ¡°No he¡¯s not me and he¡¯s not Huihe Ji either. That¡¯s Akata you dummy. How about you wake up already and stop dreaming. I swear you give me headaches. Ugh.¡± The crowd of disciples turned to look at the person speaking. What they saw was a boy in gray robes with his face covered. Of course it was Fang Zuwa.

    He spoke out with derision towards Xiao Pao. ¡°Yoo! Is that you Fang Zuwa? Is what you¡¯re saying true? So that means you got kicked out by Akata then? Tsk tsk.¡± Fang Zuwa¡¯s face turned slightly red as he heard Xiao Pao speak he. He was about to storm onto the arena floor when Akata cleared his throat.

    ¡°Ahem. I have come here to duel you Xiao Pao. Do you accept or not?¡± From the few words spoken by Xiao Pao, Akata didn¡¯t have a very good impression of him. ¡®This is the place where I¡¯m going to start my drive towards the top. His defeat will count as my stepping stone.¡¯

    Xiao Pao looked at Akata once more and shook his head. ¡°It really is Akata tsk tsk. Well I don¡¯t know how you got to this point but I¡¯ll stop it right here and now. Don¡¯t plan on going any further than here. You can stay ranked ninth for all I care, heck you can even have rank eight as long as I¡¯m rank seventh. Just know that you will never defeat me.¡± As he spoke Xiao Pao¡¯s voice seemed to echo within Akata¡¯s mind.

    Akata looked at Xiao Pao deeply and an intense fighting will surged forth. Xiao Pao looked at him with disgrace and snorted loudly. ¡°I¡¯ll accept your trifling challenge.¡±

 Chapter 18: This Is My Hatred

    Akata glared at Xiao Pao with hatred. Not only did he mock Akata and his rise to power he was also mocking all the people who helped him to achieve that power. That was something Akata couldn¡¯t accept. His fighting will started to transform. It was adapting a will of hatred, one that was aimed at Xiao Pao.

    Xiao Pao slowly walked toward the arena with his hands behind his back. He didn¡¯t give any respect towards Akata. To Fang Zuwa this was unacceptable but to the crowd of disciples this was something normal. Xiao Pao ever since he got in the cabins has never dropped below the eighth rank. Nobody could shake him and given Akata¡¯s unexpected rise in power, seeing as he had just achieved it, nobody really believed he could win. Not even Huihe Ji or Fang Zuwa, two veterans of the cabins, could beat Xiao Pao.

    Xiao Pao finally made it to the arena and stood in front of Akata. He still had his hands behind his back as he gave a look of disdain towards Akata. He really seemed uninterested in what was about to happen.

    ¡°I can¡¯t believe I¡¯m wasting my time dealing with some bug that was able to grow wings.¡± He mocked Akata and then shook his head. ¡°Let¡¯s get this over with I have better things to do today. Come on stop wasting my time and ready yourself!¡± Xiao Pao was growing impatient but as he spoke, Akata¡¯s hatred grew stronger.

    Akata didn¡¯t speak at all and instead rotated his red rune and got into a fighting stance. Xiao Pao gave a cold snort, ¡°You don¡¯t even have a weapon? Well whatever, trash doesn¡¯t need tools anyway.¡± Xiao Pao also readied himself.

    He flashed an incantation gesture and a white mist formed. The white mist gave off an eerie feeling that caused people to become dazed. ¡°This daoist magic let¡¯s me battle you in a dream world. So unless you have a great amount of mental energy you can consider this your immediate loss. Flowing Dream Mist!¡± He finished making the incantation gesture and the mist shot towards Akata where it covered him. The mist also covered over Xiao Pao.

    The scene in front of Akata changed. He was now standing in a wide field that only contained white mist and an orange sky. The hatred in his eyes had yet to vanish. ¡®So he wants to fight me with mental attacks? Fine. I¡¯ll slowly grind away his pride until there is nothing else then I¡¯ll utterly destroy him.¡¯

    Akata¡¯s eyes became cold as his hatred towards Xiao Pao grew. A red light flashed in his already crimson eyes as he rotated his red rune.

    In front of Akata appeared Xiao Pao. He looked at Akata with utter disdain and contempt. He gave a cold snort and swiped his sleeve in Akata¡¯s direction. The flick of his sleeve made the white mist in front of him to undulate intensely. A huge wave formed that stood about ten meters in height and it began to make its way towards Akata.

    Akata¡¯s hatred seemed to reach a high point as a cold gleam formed in his eyes. A red light began to emanate out of him as his red rune was put into action. He pulled his arm back and unleashed a punch with all of his strength backing it up. A red glow appeared on his fist as his punch was sent flying towards the giant wave.

    Before the wave could even go near him it started to waver. Xiao Pao¡¯s face looked confused but then he shook his head as he put off the idea. The wave continued to go towards Akata at an astonishing speed, but as it kept getting closer to the fist that was coming towards it, it trembled more.

    By the time the wave was in front of Akata it looked about ready to disperse completely. Akata¡¯s fist wasn¡¯t fully outstretched until the wave was in front of him. Once his fist touched the wave it blew apart sending white mist exploding everywhere. The punch broke apart the giant wave with ease but it didn¡¯t stop there, the blast from the punch continued on towards the direction of Xiao Pao!

    Xiao Pao looked forward, not at the blast that was heading his way, but towards Akata with a bit of interest. ¡°Well, you just may have some skill after all.¡± By the time the last word left his mouth the blast was upon him. It hit directly in the middle of his chest where it just passed through him. Then his body transformed into white mist.

    Akata gave a cold snort and closed his eyes to concentrate on spreading his nature energy. After a breath he opened them and looked to his left where he sent another punch out, then a punch to his right, and finally he spun around to send a punch right behind him.

    Three blasts of from his fist were sent in three different directions. Nothing was happening in those directions at first but then the white mist started to move and form something. In those three directions, surprisingly there were three figures that looked just alike. They looked like none other than Xiao Pao. Once they finally formed their eyes went wide because the blast was right in front of their faces.

    Boom! Boom! Boom!

    Three booms could be heard as soon as those figures finished forming. They didn¡¯t even get the chance to wave their sleeves to send out an attack. It wasn¡¯t a fast attack but Akata¡¯s senses were so acute that he could sense the clones forming before they even had the chance to form! This was the benefit of using nature energy to connect to the environment. He could sense the changes in nature itself.Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit.

    When the booms sounded Akata was still spinning around and by the time they died down he had stopped to look in a certain direction where there was one more clone. He looked at that clone directly in the eyes. He was sending a message not through words but through actions.

    Xiao Pao¡¯s clone didn¡¯t look frightened in the least just very displeased. He gave a cold snort and he flashed an incantation gesture. The white mist undulated greatly and hundreds of clones formed. The clones surrounded Akata from all sides giving him no room to escape.

    Akata stood there in the same place still looking at the original clone. His eyes were cold with hatred as he looked at the clone. His cold eyes flashed with a golden light and his body started to radiate with gold.

    All the clones then flashed an incantation gesture and the white mist undulated to form giant waves, rivers, and waterfalls. They all crashed toward the center where Akata was standing. Akata raised his head to look at the waves, rivers, and waterfalls heading towards him. He didn¡¯t move anywhere but instead pulled his fist back.

    The fist glowed with a red and gold light. He was going to use the power of his red and gold rune in order to combat the combined magical attacks of the clones! The pressure radiating from Akata was intense to the extreme. The white mist that was around him spread away from him, now you could see the grass beneath his feet. The pressure continued to increase as the grass was then flattened, then the crushed into nothingness, and finally the ground caved in to form a crater!

    The scene even made Xiao Pao put on a face of confusion. ¡®Just what technique is he using?¡¯ he thought to himself.

    ¡®I can¡¯t use the power of the gold rune physically but what if I use it mentally then? Instead of making a corporeal form I can make it illusory! This shall be my new way of using Astral Obliteration until it gets stronger!¡¯ The pressure from Akata increased exponentially as the glow in his fist grew brighter. Soon an illusory image of a small rock the size of a fingernail formed in front of his fist.

    The waves, rivers, and waterfalls came closer to Akata and they brought their own pressure upon him. The pressure was intense as it bore down on him. As it came from hundreds of figures while as Akata was by himself.

    The attacks of the clones all congregated together in the center and bore down on Akata. It was then that Akata threw his fist out upward towards the attacks. His fist strike sent out the illusory image of the rock. A red and gold glow exploded out from Akata as he threw his fist. One of his eyes changed completely golden while the other eye became a brighter crimson color. The blast from this punch seemed to encompass the whole world they were in and absorb energy from the surrounding area.

    This was the most powerful attack Akata had ever used before. The illusory rock was the size of his fingernail when he first sent it out but as it headed toward the congregated attacks of the clones it grew in size. By the time it was at the attack of the clones it was the size of a boulder!

    The blast headed straight into the air towards the attacks of the clones. BANG! Akata¡¯s illusory boulder pummeled through the attacks and blasted it apart as easy as putting a hand through water. Xiao Pao¡¯s face changed dramatically when he saw this and he became flustered in an instant. But what happened next caused his face to turn unsightly to an extreme degree.

    Akata¡¯s illusory boulder from earlier didn¡¯t dissipate as it smashed apart Xiao Pao¡¯s attack but instead came to a halt in midair. Akata¡¯s face was pale but he had his hand in the air with his palm pointed toward the illusory boulder. He gave a cold look toward the original clone and then waved his hand to it. That motion sent the energy in the area everywhere as it was thrown into chaos.

    Craaack! The land started to crack under the pressure of the giant boulder hurdling towards it. Xiao Pao¡¯s face was dark and unsightly as he flashed another incantation gesture. The hundreds of clones began to undulate fiercely as they began to fly towards the original clone uncontrollably. The clones all fused with the original clone and the original began to grow. Soon it stood a hundred meters tall. It didn¡¯t pay attention to Akata but instead the illusory boulder that was crashing down towards it.

    This giant was the true mental apparition of Xiao Pao. At first Xiao Pao would send out clones to combat people he sent into his daoist magic but if things got too tough he would use his true mental apparition to fight the opponents true mental apparition.

    The giant flashed an incantation gesture and waved his hand towards the boulder. What was left of the white mist gathered in the air and into the form of a massive staff. If you looked at the scene from far away however that staff would look just like a giant river.

    ¡°AAARGH!!¡± Xiao Pao yelled out as he pushed himself to create this giant river and use it to combat the illusory boulder. The giant river crashed into the illusory boulder slightly slowing its descent. However the illusory boulder acted just like a dam, the river couldn¡¯t do anything to it really.

    Akata gave a cold snort and then closed his hand to form a fist. ¡°THIS¡­ IS MY HATRED!¡± The illusory boulder came crashing onto Xiao Pao¡¯s true mental apparition and utterly destroyed it. Then it shrunk in on itself and then exploded outwards causing a huge boom.

    The land broke apart and the white mist was dispersed into nothingness. The orange sky took on a red and gold glow but then turned black. Soon everything turned black. Everything was dark.

    Then Akata opened his eyes and found himself back on the eighth arena. He was standing in the same place he had been and the white mist around him was starting to fade away. As it faded he could finally see Xiao Pao.

    Xiao Pao didn¡¯t look well. His body was drenched in sweat and his face was extremely pale. His breathing was haggard and his face unsightly. ¡°You fiend! I¡¯ll end you!¡± He yelled out.

    Akata¡¯s face was also pale but he immediately rotated his red rune and recovered from exhaustion. He still had a cold look in his eyes as he took a step forward. A red and gold light instantly radiated out of his body and the pressure in the area increased dramatically.

    He pulled his fist back and an illusory rock the size of a fingernail could be seen forming. Just as he was about to punch out a voice interrupted.

    ¡°The eighth rank cabin match has been concluded. Kaminari Akata, the challenger, has defeated Xiao Pao. Akata Kaminari shall now take the eighth cabin and become the eighth ranked disciple whereas Xiao Pao is now ranked ninth. The ninth rank must wait a week until Akata can be challenged again.¡±

    That was what Third Elder had just announced. As his words were echoing out a force made Akata stop in his tracks and also disperse his energy. When that happened his eyes cleared up and he seemed to gain his senses back.

    ¡°Eh? I won? But I didn¡¯t get to truly finish off Xiao Pao.¡± Akata was displeased with this outcome. He wanted to thoroughly crush Xiao Pao so that he could learn some respect, but Third Elder had stopped him.

    Third Elder sent a mental message to Akata where his face changed. He nodded and then backed off. A wind appeared that carried both of them off the arena and took them in the direction of the Medicine Pavilion.

    The crowd of disciples that were there to watch the match didn¡¯t know what to do. This wasn¡¯t truly a match at all. All they saw was Akata and Xiao Pao get covered in mist that lasted for about thirty breaths of time until it dispersed. Both of the people looked like they had fought and Akata was about to launch an attack that seemed way too powerful for someone at Grade 2. But then Third Elder announced the results of the match and stopped him.

    It was truly¡­ boring.

 Chapter 19: Space-time Scenario Chamber

    Red Cloud Sect Medicine Pavilion

    Akata and Xiao Pao appeared in front of Seventh Elder in the Medicine Pavilion. They both exchanged cold looks until Seventh Elder broke them up.

    ¡°Alright you two are injured so you¡¯ll be treated right away. Xiao Pao you will head directly to room 6. Go now.¡± Seventh Elder said this with a calm and cheerful voice. She gave Xiao Pao a sad look until he left towards the room. She then turned her attention to Akata.

    ¡°Akata¡­ how many times are you going to end up here? Oh well that doesn¡¯t matter. Anyways you¡¯ll be heading to the Pill Division of the Medicine Pavilion. Third Elder is awaiting you there hehe.¡± She gave a slight laugh and then shooed him off.

    Her face grew calm as she began to think to herself. ¡®I wonder just who is he for him to be so important to the sect.¡¯ She kept her thoughts to herself and then made her way to room 6.

    Pill Division

    The Pill Division was a part of the Medicine Pavilion. It was still a simple building and the aroma of medicinal pills and plants wafted through the air. Akata walked into the one-room building where he saw many shelves that contained a grand and diverse amount of pills and plants.

    In the room there stood two people sitting cross legged. One person was a young woman in her late twenties wearing a long blue robe. She looked at Akata and Akata at her. The other was Third Elder who sat cross legged beside her.

    ¡°Disciple greets Third and Fifth Elder.¡± Akata clasped hands and bowed down showing his respect for the two.

    ¡°Ah. Akata that was a nice match that you displayed. You have improved greatly with your physical and mental abilities. Given enough time you will surely rise to great heights.¡± Fifth Elder said with a wide smile across her face.

    ¡°Mn. That is true you will be unparalleled. Soon you¡¯ll be facing the top three and once you do that things will get much tougher.¡± Third Elder added on. ¡°Well that isn¡¯t what I called you for, I have something to speak to you about in private. If you¡¯ll excuse us Fifth Elder.¡±

    Third Elder stood up and walked to Akata¡¯s side. ¡°We¡¯ll be taking our leave now.¡± He then swished his sleeve and they both vanished into thin air without a trace. Fifth Elder was left alone in the room thinking.

    ¡®Just what do these other Elder¡¯s have planned for Akata? This is rather suspicious, I should go ask around.¡¯ She closed her eyes and went back to meditating.

    Third Elder and Akata appeared in room 3 of the Medicine Pavilion. Third Elder swished his sleeve creating a barrier to block out sound and then looked at Huihe Ji. Akata looked around and also saw Huihe Ji laying there on the bed seemingly fast asleep. Akata had a confused look on his face as he wondered why they were here.

    ¡°Third Elder¡­ you said that you needed to meet with me about something important, so does that something have to do with Huihe Ji?¡± Akata asked calmly.

    ¡°You are partially correct. To be more precise that something is more like helping you so that you can help him.¡± Third Elder stated. He saw Akata¡¯s face become more confused so he continued on. ¡°I¡¯ll cut to the chase, that rune inside of you is deadly. If you don¡¯t learn to control it soon then Huihe Ji is going to die.¡±

    Akata¡¯s face changed greatly under the shock of what he just heard. He was going to retort but then he thought about why would Third Elder lie to him. ¡°Wha¡­ what¡¯s wrong with him?¡± Akata could barely control his speech as he let his question drift out of his mouth.

    ¡°Your control of the runes inside of you are terrible. When you attacked him with the power of your red rune it unleashed an eroding effect on his blood. Basically if he doesn¡¯t get treated soon his blood will deteriorate until there is nothing else¡­ then he will die.¡± Third Elder said with a look of gloom on his face.Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

    ¡°Th¡­ tha¡­ that can¡¯t be! No no no no no! Why can¡¯t you help him? Can¡¯t you save him?!¡± Akata was becoming flustered and almost couldn¡¯t control himself.

    ¡°Right now I have him sealed so that his injury doesn¡¯t spread at a fast rate. But Akata¡­ you¡¯re the only one that can save him. Since you¡¯re the only one with that red rune then it is only you who can save him.¡± He gave a deep look at Akata and continued. ¡°Since it has come to this I will train you so that you can learn to control this strength of yours. However since I am bad with knowledge on runes and the like so Second Elder will teach you in that regard.¡±

    Akata saw a glimmer of hope and he got on his knees and bowed to Third Elder. ¡°Please I beg of you Third Elder help me to attain what I need in order to help Huihe Ji. I will be forever in your debt.¡± Akata didn¡¯t raise his head from the ground one bit as he awaited Third Elder¡¯s answer.

    ¡°Ay kid I already said I¡¯ll do it so why are you bowing? You got something wrong with you?¡± Third Elder swished his sleeve and a wind picked Akata up from the ground. ¡°Well since you¡¯re ready then follow me.¡± Third Elder along with Akata walked out of the Medicine Pavilion.

    ¡°Third Elder could you tell me about this rune in me? I just got it out of nowhere and while it seems to be helpful during combat it is obviously dangerous. Maybe if I know more about its existence then I¡¯ll be able to control it a bit better.¡± Akata said as they were walking along.

    ¡°Hmm. Well like I said earlier runes aren¡¯t my thing kid. Second Elder is more knowledgable than me when it comes to stuff like that. However I do know that that rune inside of you is very special. It can do wonderful things that many can¡¯t even dream about being possible.¡± After that Third Elder didn¡¯t speak further so Akata didn¡¯t ask anymore questions.

    They followed a path that went straight to the Elder Quarters. The Elder Quarters were the most extravagant place in the city. The houses there were the best residences in all of Purple Sky City. Buildings aligned with red banners and the walking paths dotted with beautiful plants. But one house stood out from the rest. It was a small house, almost like a shed, and it was in a remote corner of the Elder Quarters. Third Elder led Akata to this small shed.

    The shed looked like it had been lost to time the way the walls peeled. Vines could be seen everywhere around the shed as if countless snakes roamed it. A red banner with the sect¡¯s insignia could be seen hanging in front of the shed. The appearance of the shed put off the balance of the whole Elder Quarters.

    Inside the shed-like home there were two beds and a table with two chairs. There were also two windows. In fact if you looked at the house as a whole it was actually split in half and each half had the exact same things but opposite of each other.. Each side looked the same from the furniture and its placement to the design of the floorboards. The interior had a symmetrical appearance which brought a sense of balance to it.

    In the middle of the room however there was a red square rug on the floor. The rug wasn¡¯t totally out of place but it did set of the balance of the whole room. There was a reason for this too. One look at it and you could tell that it led somewhere. Akata couldn¡¯t help but notice it, considering it had a giant handle sticking out from it.

    Third Elder made his way to the rug and lifted it up by the handle. ¡°This door leads to my training grounds. It is where you will be training to control your strength and also learn some new things. You¡¯ll be training here in private therefore nobody can know about this.¡± Third Elder looked at Akata to make sure he was getting all that was said.

    Akata nodded his head in agreement. ¡°Good. Now come on in.¡± Third Elder led Akata inside of the door. With that they both stepped inside the door that led to the training grounds. Inside it was a completely white room with nothing in it. The ceiling, floor, and walls were a blank white. It truly looked bland.

    Third Elder continued on speaking. ¡°While training you will think about nothing else but getting better. At the end of each week you will challenge another cabin member so that the other disciples will still notice your presence. However besides that, and maybe the occasional going to Misty Forest, you will be here training non-stop.¡±

    Akata couldn¡¯t help but look around wryly and ask, ¡°Is this where I¡¯ll be training at? If so isn¡¯t it a little plain? There doesn¡¯t seem to be anything I can do in here.¡±

    ¡°No no no¡­ not just training but staying. This is the survival room you¡¯ll be training in for the time being. Don¡¯t be fooled by what you see as of now, this room is truly magnificent.¡± As Third Elder spoke, his eyes showed with a gleam of proudness and his face glowed with satisfaction.

    ¡°Excuse me, Third Elder, but I can¡¯t help but ask what kind of training am I going to do in here?¡± Akata was at a loss, he really had no idea what was so special about this room.

    ¡°You can do any kind of training in here actually. But mostly you¡¯ll be fighting and remembering. This isn¡¯t training to raise your cultivation base but to help you to control yours.¡± Third Elder said this mysteriously.

    ¡°Well how is this place going to help me to train. It just looks like a blank room. Almost nothing can be done in here.¡± Akata was greatly confused almost to the point where he thought this was a joke. He just couldn¡¯t believe that this blank room would be the place where he stayed and trained at.

    ¡°Well you see kid that¡¯s where you¡¯re wrong. This room is special, as it is a formation that I came up with.¡± Third Elder looked around gleefully and started walking to the middle of the white room.

    ¡°A formation?¡± Akata asked puzzled. He knew what formations were, he was a cultivator afterall. But he didn¡¯t understand why he would train in one.

    ¡°Precisely. However, I¡¯m not a formation expert, I just dabble in it from time to time. After a bit of work I came up with a way to build this room.¡± As Third Elder was talking he made it to the middle of the room where he stood. ¡°This room is made up of many different formations put together.¡±

    As he was speaking he flashed an incantation gesture in the air and pointed up to the ceiling. ¡°All the formations work together to create something amazing. In particular it made this room, which I call the ¡®Space-time Scenario Chamber¡¯. It is able to alter spacetime and ¡®transport¡¯ you to a different place that is adequate for your training.¡±

    ¡°This will be the place for your training. Other than the Sect Leader, and Second and First Elder, you¡¯re the only other person to be in here.¡± Third Elder said this extremely calmly. So calm it gave rise to fear in Akata. He even started to unconsciously rotate the red rune in his soul region.

    ¡°First things first, I have to test you to see what level you¡¯re truly at. Just do me a favor and don¡¯t stain the floor.¡± His calm voice grew colder with each word and when he finished speaking he vanished.

    Boom!

 Chapter 20: This Is Just Unfair

    Third Elder disappeared from the spot he was standing in, and a huge boom erupted in the distance. Akata could feel the pressure in the area increase by tenfold and it was all focused on him.

    ¡°What kind of beast did he send after me?!¡± Akata¡¯s eyes went wide and his mouth gaped open as he felt the tremendous amount of pressure coming from in front of him. ¡°Considering the pressure it¡¯s not totally out of my league, I should be able to stand against it for a time. Time to test my skill.¡± His eyes blazed with a fierce fighting will and before he could take his second step a voice rang out.

    ¡°This beast isn¡¯t so simple either, be wary.¡± The voice obviously belonged to Third Elder. He was still there watching from a different location. Of course Akata wouldn¡¯t be in any real danger of dying because he could control the whole simulation.

    As Third Elder finished his sentence a roar rang out from the forest ahead of Akata. Trees toppled over and the ground shook. The pressure continued to increase as the beast made its way to Akata.

    Thud! Thud! Thud!

    The beast appeared before Akata with a loud roar. It had a black shell that covered its whole body with tiny spikes that protruded out from it. Its snout extended from its face. The tail it had flailed about causing the nearby trees to fall. Its feet had sharp claws that dug into the ground with each step it took.

    ¡°A giant¡­ armadillo? But the pressure it brings is enormous so it can¡¯t just be a regular armadillo even if it is giant.¡± Akata prepared himself to launch an attack on the giant armadillo.

    The giant armadillo looked at Akata with its bloodshot eyes and let out another roar. The roar caused the land to quake and the leaves on trees to fall to the ground. Then it curled up in a ball and charged straight ahead towards Akata.

    Akata stood in the same space and pulled his arm straight back and waited for the armadillo to come closer. He rotated the red rune in his soul region and when the armadillo was within reach he punched out. The punch was backed by the full power of his cultivation base as well as the red rune. Although he didn¡¯t know the use of the red rune, he found that it increased his strength by a lot depending on how fast he rotated it.

    This time Akata didn¡¯t hold anything back as he unleashed his full power blow. The punch he let out was truly amazing, it was on the level of someone that had a cultivation base at the 4th Grade of the Mortal Rank.

    The wind howled as it was thrown into disarray, and the trees bent over. The punch landed on the shell of the giant armadillo and it caused the shell to bend inwards slightly. The giant armadillo was thrown back and it crashed through a tree before it came to a stop.

    The armadillo unfurled itself and looked at Akata with mad eyes and let out an earth shaking roar. It didn¡¯t seem to be injured in the slightest but instead even more enraged. It rolled back into a ball and charged towards Akata once more, this time with an astonishing speed.

    Akata sucked in a cold breath breath as he watched this unfold. His punch just then could injure those at the 3rd Grade of the Mortal Rank and compete with those at the 4th Grade. But the giant armadillo could withstand it like it was nothing at all.

    ¡°What kind of cultivation base does this beast have? It¡¯s able to take on the full power of my punch and not be injured at all?¡± Akata was at a complete loss of how to deal with this beast. He used his full strength just then but it didn¡¯t do a thing to the armadillo.

    ¡°Humph so that doesn¡¯t work then I guess I¡¯ll try to back it up with the power of my gold rune also.¡± A gold light flashed in his eyes as he rotated his golden rune in his soul region. A gold glow appeared alongside his red glow. He pulled his arm back and the glow of gold and red could be seen on his fist.

    Soon an illusory rock the size of a fingernail could be seen in front of his fist. Akata charged towards the giant armadillo and unleashed his punch.

    Boom!

    Trees toppled over and the ground was ripped up as the blast sent an illusory rock hurdling towards the giant armadillo. The illusory rock seemed to absorb the surrounding energy as it grew in size as it approached the armadillo.

    Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.

    By the time it was in front of the armadillo it was the size of Akata¡¯s body. Wham! The rolled up armadillo and the illusory rock collided. The collision pushed Akata back a few meters. The armadillo was thrown back and crashed through multiple trees. After it unfurled itself a light wound could be seen with blood dripping out.

    ¡°So it was sort of affective? Ugh¡­ maybe I can try this meteor magic once more. Although I don¡¯t know if it will succeed.¡± Akata wasn¡¯t that good with magic and divine abilities, so when he unleashed his Astral Obliteration he didn¡¯t actually know if it was going to work. ¡°When I use this magic I have a one in five chance of it succeeding.¡±

    Akata¡¯s crimson red eyes glowed with determination as he pointed his finger in the air and rotated the golden rune in his soul region. His eyes flashed with a tint of gold and a golden aura spread out over his finger. The land in the area started to shake and the ground broke apart, crumbling, and flew towards his finger. The rock at his finger compacted together, condensing and making the rock turn into a ball with a dense amount of energy.

    ¡°This is a lot of energy to handle. I don¡¯t think I can maintain it anymore. It feels different from when I first casted this magic.¡± Akata¡¯s face went pale and the ball of rock suddenly burst apart and blasted in different directions. The blast sent Akata flying backwards with blood spurting out of his mouth. He landed hard against a boulder and coughed up multiple mouthfuls of blood.

    The giant armadillo was hit by the blast too as it was equally thrown back and crashed through multiple trees before coming to a stop. As it unrolled it showed that its body was bloody in some places, but didn¡¯t seem to be too badly injured.

    It looked even more mad and this time ran towards Akata while brandishing its claws. It let out a roar as it sped towards Akata seemingly bent on tearing him apart. A faint black aura started to spread out from the armadillo as it charged at Akata. Although Akata couldn¡¯t see it, Third Elder saw it perfectly and he gave a slight smile.

    Akata finally got up after coughing up 8 mouthfuls of blood. He looked dazed and his face was pale, but he hadn¡¯t lost focus on the fight. He had kept his eyes open and staring at the armadillo the whole time not letting it out of his sight. He knew that if you let the opponent do something without you looking, you would be in a very bad situation. He saw the armadillo charging at him and he couldn¡¯t help but smile.

    ¡°Now this is a life or death fight!¡± He yelled out and activated his [Shadowfeet] skill. The skill wasn¡¯t a magic technique but was a movement skill. Anyone could use it whether they practiced cultivation or not. But in the hands of Akata who could connect with nature and practiced body cultivating, the skill was brought out to its full potential.

    Akata¡¯s feet seemed to merge in with his shadow and he sped to the side to dodge the oncoming armadillo. The defense of the armadillo shell was just too tough and he knew that he couldn¡¯t penetrate it with the power he had now. Therefore he came up with a plan to deal with it.

    ¡°The armadillo isn¡¯t fully protected by its shell. When it was still rolled up in the ball and was blasted away it came out with injuries. Those injuries came from the inside suggesting that under its shell is its weak point.The only hard part is trying to get to there to attack it and also gathering enough strength to damage it.¡± Akata immediately analyzed their previous exchange and came to this conclusion.

    ¡°It¡¯s speed is a bit slower than mine and when I use [Shadowfeet] the gap becomes even greater. If I¡¯m able to draw its attention up in the air and then attack its belly when it is exposed I should be able to defeat it.¡± Akata was a fighting genius after all so it only took two breaths of time to come to his conclusion and make a strategy for dealing with the armadillo.

    Akata kept on dodging the armadillo¡¯s attacks waiting for the best opportunity. Even though he was injured he kept dodging the attacks not letting up at all. The armadillo couldn¡¯t touch him and it looked as if it was getting severely frustrated as its attacks became more relentless. It let out a roar and the faint black aura surrounding it became more pronounced, Akata could even see it by now, he couldn¡¯t help but fall back a bit because he was being cautious.

    ¡°What¡¯s that black aura? It doesn¡¯t look like it''s doing anything but it is giving me a bad feeling. I¡¯ll probe it some and see if I can get it to use it, then I can make a plan for it accordingly.¡± Akata stopped edging back from the armadillo and grabbed a nearby stick from the ground.

    ¡°Time to practice my spear arts again.¡± He pulled his arm back and threw it forward towards the armadillo. The stick flew through the air and approached the armadillo. Given the size of the armadillo it would¡¯ve been harder to miss than to hit it. The stick spear was upon the armadillo in an instant and just when it was about to land on it, the air around it twisted and caused the stick spear to bend away. The speed of the stick spear also slowed down and it hit the armadillo shell with a tap.

    ¡°Huh? That aura alters the surrounding space? How am I supposed to fight against that?! This thing is overpowered! I don¡¯t even want to fight it even more! This is just unfair!¡± Akata seemed to be throwing a temper tantrum as he yelled out.

    All of a sudden laughter rang out and the space in front of Akata distorted as Third Elder appeared. His laughter rang out through the whole forest and shook the trees. It even caused the giant armadillo to edge back and have blood ooze from its mouth. It didn¡¯t have any intentions of moving forward anymore as it began to turn pale with fear.

    ¡°Ahahaha! So you do know when to realize when you''re weak, that is very very good. It is okay to retreat sometimes so that you¡¯ll be able to fight again later. This first part of testing was meant to discourage you and make you realize that no matter what you do, you won¡¯t win against it.¡± Third Elder spoke with laughter and joy.

    Akata looked at Third Elder for a moment lost in thought and then turned his head towards the giant armadillo. ¡°So just how strong is that beast then?¡± Akata truly wanted to know the answer to this. Even though he couldn¡¯t face it head on, he felt like it was close to his level. Yet he couldn¡¯t figure out the cultivation base of it.

    ¡°Oh, the Mud Armadillo?¡± Third Elder put on a weird smile that caused Akata¡¯s heart to quiver. ¡°It merely just stepped into cultivation. It¡¯s at the Docile Rank Grade 2.¡± He spoke with indifference yet Akata could instantly got the meaning behind his words.

    The Mortal Realm was a path of cultivation for mortal people who wished to practice cultivation. The first level of the Mortal Realm was called the Mortal Rank. Beasts on the other hand have their own path to cultivation called the Creature Realm. When a creature first steps into the path of cultivation they reach the level of Docile Rank.

    Beasts had tough bodies which made their cultivation path stronger than mortals. A Docile Rank Grade 1 creature was equivalent to a Mortal Rank Grade 2 human. But Akata¡¯s body strength was equivalent to a Mortal Rank Grade 3 without using his full power. Yet the creature was still able to outclass him.

    Third Elder could see the look on Akata¡¯s face and couldn¡¯t help but laugh out loud again. ¡°Hohoho, this creature is very special. Given enough time you¡¯ll be able to beat it effortlessly with just your body alone. I shall train you well indeed. Well, I think now is a good as time as any to start your second part of your testing.¡± Third Elder flashed another incantation in the air and the area started trembling and disappearing.

 Chapter 21: The Treasure Pavilion

    The trees and all the leaves in the area started to vanish into nothingness. The destroyed terrain cleared itself and the grass disappeared. The whole space was changing and being replaced with white walls, a white ceiling, and a white floor. They were back in the original training room.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about how long you¡¯ve been in there. To you it must¡¯ve been a while but to others, only a breath of time has passed. That¡¯s the benefit of the Space-time Scenario Chamber, it gives you a lot of training in no time at all.¡± Third Elder¡¯s eyes glowed as he talked about his Space-time Scenario Chamber.

    ¡°Third Elder, what exactly is the second part of my testing?¡± Akata couldn¡¯t help but ask. He had many reasons to ask, one was that Third Elder had paused seemingly in the middle of admiring his work, another was to prepare himself.

    ¡°The first part of your training was to have you realize that you can¡¯t fight everything. Even if they are a lower level than you, you have to be careful and retreat when needed. The second part of your training¡­ doesn¡¯t involve me so I don¡¯t actually know.¡± Third Elder said this with a bit of loss as he scratched the top of his head.

    He continued on, ¡°Second Elder has a separate test for you that she intends to have you go through. I¡¯m about to take you over to her right now actually.¡± Third Elder spoke with confusion and boredom, but then he remembered something that made him let out an ¡°Ah!¡±

    ¡°I noticed when you were fighting that you picked up a stick to use as a spear. Could it be that you don¡¯t have a weapon? And are you adept in wielding the spear?¡± Even though the Elders paid attention to the disciples and especially Akata, they didn¡¯t put enough of their attention on them that they knew everything.

    ¡°It is true that I don¡¯t have a weapon right now. Yet I am not that proficient in the spear either. I simply play around with it hurling it through the air hoping it will hit my target. That was actually the first time my aim was able to send the stick in the direction of my target.¡± Akata didn¡¯t hold any information back as he told the truth to Third Elder.

    ¡°I see. Well every cultivator should have a weapon to use. Even if you solely focus on body cultivation, a weapon can help out in any situation. I¡¯ll take you to get a weapon from the treasury while we are on our way to Second Elder.¡± Third Elder spoke in a wise manner this time.

    Akata couldn¡¯t understand anything about Third Elder. He felt that Third Elder was completely in his own world. He could laugh, be serious, and speak wisdom all in the same breath. This wasn¡¯t the only thing he didn¡¯t understand though.

    ¡°If you don¡¯t mind my asking Third Elder, how come you all are helping me to this extent? Is there something special about me? Or this red rune in my soul region?¡± Akata was a genius so he was able to deduce matters quite easily.

    ¡°The reason why we are helping you is not important right now. Given your power this information would do more harm than good, so it¡¯ll be best not to know for now. If you can manage to reach the Great Circle of the Saintly Rank then I will personally let you know.¡± Third Elder didn¡¯t speak after that and looked like he had no more intentions of bringing up the matter again.

    But to Akata the few words Third Elder had spoken caused his mind to race with many different thoughts. Not mentioning the information alone would cause his life to be in turmoil, but the mention of the Great Circle of the Saintly Rank was something completely out of this world for Akata. He had never heard of anyone even reaching that stage before, yet Third Elder who he was speaking to, said it way too casually. As if that level meant nothing to him.

    Akata had many thoughts and ideas on the matter but he chose not to voice them. Seeing how quick Third Elder stopped the topic he knew he wasn¡¯t going to get anymore answers. He might even cause trouble to befall on him if he probed too much.

    Third Elder and Akata made their way across the Elder Quarters to the Treasure Pavilion. The pavilion wasn¡¯t that grand at all. It was two stories tall and was covered with grey stone and red banners with the sect¡¯s emblem on them. The two figures walked towards the two guards at the front gate.

    Both guards stood up straight as they noticed Third Elder approaching. They clasped hands and gave a deep bow as they greeted him. ¡°Greetings Third Elder!¡± They said in unison. Third Elder nodded his head and continued walking with Akata a step behind him. The guards didn¡¯t raise their heads until Third Elder was inside of the building.

    ¡°Was that Akata with Third Elder? I wonder what he could be doing?¡±

    ¡°Be careful, right now you¡¯re questioning Third Elder. Just accept it and keep doing your job.¡±If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

    Inside of the Treasure Pavilion there was still the same grey stone and red banners. The floor was made of a dark brown wood that looked as if it came from Misty Forest some time ago, giving off an ancient air.

    Akata looked around to see many many treasures. All the items he saw were particularly eye catching to him. He saw a set of crimson red beads that had the aura of blood. He also saw many sets of armor, although they looked like they came from old times. What caught his attention even more was a pair of swords that gave off a feeling of warmth and coolness.

    ¡°The Treasure Pavilion has better items than the Weapon Pavilion we have in the sect. We don¡¯t really care about treasures here so most of our items are old and rustic. Even though they are ancient they are still usable, choose something that fits you.¡± Third Elder spoke nonchalantly as he talked about the Treasure Pavilion. He found a place to sit and then just waited. Any disciple in the sect would die to have the chance of acquiring something from within, but to him none of these items held value to him.

    Akata¡¯s eyes glowed with a bright light as he looked around at all the treasures and weapons in the room. He ran from side to side to check out various items and test them. He even used his Shadowfeet technique so that he could go faster.

    The set blood pearls he came across radiated a bloodthirsty aura so strong that Akata couldn¡¯t even approach it. He immediately gave up the idea of acquiring that set of items. He sped to the sets of armors that gave off and ancient feel. He tried many of them on and found them to be amazing. One set of armor caused his body to glow with a golden light, it was a natural protective shield that would last as long as he wore the armor! Another set of armor contained a daoist ability in it which could summon a thunderstorm!

    Akata kept these sets of armor in his mind as he looked around some more. He then came across the pair of swords. One was the color of vermillion flames and the other was a calm azure. As he approached he felt the pressure from the swords that caused him to hold his breath. One sword gave off a blistering heat while the other was a soothing coolness. He reached out towards the swords and grabbed them. He instantly felt power course through his veins and it almost caused him to cough up a mouthful of blood. He hefted the two swords in the air and swung them down. A streak of fire and ice flew from the blades causing the surrounding area to feel intense heat and cold at the same time. The two blasts integrated together and formed a new kind of element. A thunderous boom rang throughout the Treasure Pavilion causing the ground to shake.

    Akata couldn¡¯t help but let out an ¡°Eeee?!¡± sound as the boom resounded out. Third Elder was there, watching Akata run around testing the various weapons, with a blank face on. Whenever Akata picked up a weapon that could cause some damage he would set up a quick barrier to block the damage from the pavilion. So even though a huge boom rang out, nothing was damaged in the slightest. Third Elder continued to sit there with a bored look on his face and a hand to prop his head up. Even after Akata tested the twin swords he continued to wave a finger in the air on occasion and sigh out of boredom.

    He knew how important it was to choose the right weapon as this choice would follow you throughout your whole life. So he didn¡¯t want to rush Akata in picking a weapon, and he didn¡¯t want to leave him either just in case he needed guidance. Third Elder looked off into the distance and a smile suddenly rose on his face. To others it looked like he was smiling at the wall. But his eyes weren¡¯t looking at the wall, they were looking far beyond that.

    Boom!

    A loud boom could be heard all of a sudden. Akata looked in the direction of Third Elder and sucked in a breath of cold air. ¡°What happened?!¡± Surprisingly this boom didn¡¯t come from him this time, it came from the direction of Third Elder. Dust rose in the air and obscured his vision. Although it didn¡¯t matter if he could see or not because almost immediately after he heard yelling. It didn¡¯t sound like someone getting attacked though, but more like an argument.

    ¡°WHY THE HECK YOU DO THAT FOR?!¡±

    ¡°DON¡¯T PLAY DUMB! I KNEW YOU WERE PEEKING AT SOME RANDOM GIRL AGAIN YOU PERVERT!!¡±

    ¡°I JUST HAPPENED TO LOOK IN THAT DIRECTION! IT¡¯S NOT MY FAULT SHE WAS JUST ABOUT TO TAKE A SHOWER! AND WHO ARE YOU CALLING A PERVERT?!¡±

    ¡°YOU, YOU SUPER PERV! CAN¡¯T KEEP YOUR EYES OFF THESE FEMALE MORTALS CAN YOU, YOU SEX FIEND!¡±

    The argument caused Akata¡¯s mind to reel. Not from the power they put into their words or the pressure emanating out from the two figures, but from the words being said to each other. After the dust settled Akata could clearly see who the second person arguing with Third Elder was. It was none other than his twin sister, Second Elder.

    Akata stared blank faced at the two people in front of him making accusations and yelling out past events towards each other, trying to gain the upper hand using each others private knowledge. Eventually after a while they both settled down. Second Elder looked on with a lofty expression while Third Elder had a grave look on his face, clearly he had lost in the verbal dispute.

    Second Elder cleared her throat and looked towards Akata¡¯s direction. ¡°I apologize that you had to witness our quarrels just now. How about we make it up by allowing you to choose two things.¡± She spoke in a professional manner that showed her dignity and elegancy. Although that didn¡¯t help with her appearance much as she was covered in dust.

    Akata¡¯s eyes glowed when he heard that he could now choose two things. He vigorously nodded his head in agreement and continued on searching for a weapon to use. He searched and searched and found many things. He found cultivation pills, medicinal plants, sets of armor, daoist techniques, and more. His eyes started to turn bloodshot as he became obsessed with what he was seeing.

    After a while he stopped in place and took a deep breath. He then sat down and started meditating, he felt as if he was losing his mind so he forcefully calmed himself down. He started to ease his mind and think things through. ¡®There are so many wonderful things here! If I could take them all that would be great but unfortunately I can only take two. Right now I have to calm myself down and choose reasonably.¡¯ He took a deep breath and slowly let it out.

    ¡®If I¡¯m going to follow the path of body cultivation I won¡¯t need any sets of armor. Since Third and Second Elder are going to be training me, there won¡¯t be any need to get pills from this place. The crimson beads have such a strong bloodlust that I can¡¯t even approach it. The twin swords hold a lot of power in them but they don¡¯t truly fit to my style. While I do like overbearing power, I won¡¯t be able to fully use them for a while until my cultivation base rises. Until then they will instead hinder me.¡¯

    Akata calmly slipped into a deep meditative state as he felt his surroundings become much more familiar to him. He was able to ¡°see¡± his surroundings now in full view and look at all the various items. Something rather completely ordinary caught his attention as he scanned his surroundings. Akata opened his eyes and looked in that direction. He looked in the distance at a corner that was covered with dust.

    Second Elder and Third Elder were watching on and were actually a bit surprised to see Akata forcefully calm himself. They conversed to each other mentally about Akata, but the latter didn¡¯t know that. Then they saw him look at a certain corner and their faces changed to one of interest and curiosity.

 Chapter 22: Second Elderâ€™s Test

    In the corner that Akata turned his head to it looked very insignificant. Dust covered everything in the corner and that made the items over there look useless.

    Akata looked towards the corner and sized it up. He then strode forth and made his way to the corner. He didn¡¯t walk fast nor slow, it was almost like he was being drawn over by the corner. He didn¡¯t focus on anything but the corner, not paying attention to the other treasures or to the Elders.

    As he approached the corner Second and Third Elder could tell which specific item he was heading for. It had a long wooden shaft about two meters long and a curved black metal blade at the top about a meter in length. It didn¡¯t look spectacular and didn¡¯t give off a special kind of aura.

    ¡°The Bludhaven Scythe?¡± Third Elder exclaimed with surprise.

    ¡°I wonder why he is choosing this? This is interesting indeed.¡± Second Elder was first curious and then thoughtful.

    Akata was upon the scythe after a few breaths. He reached his hand out and grabbed the scythe by the shaft and used his cultivation base to clean the scythe from dust. ¡°It¡¯s not particularly special but when I was scanning with my nature sense I came across this and it stood out. I wonder why that is? Even the other treasures didn¡¯t show up as clearly as this scythe.¡± Akata inspected the scythe from top to bottom but couldn¡¯t find anything outstanding about it.

    Akata turned around with the scythe in hand and bowed to Second and Third Elder. ¡°I would like to choose this scythe as my first item Second and Third Elder.¡±

    Second Elder was the one to respond to Akata. ¡°Why of course you can choose that scythe. But what made you choose this? I am curious as to know what led you to it.¡± She truly was curious as to what led him to the Bludhaven Scythe. He scanned his surroundings with nature sense, which was different from divine sense, and he had found the scythe. Second Elder was powerful and therefore had a strong divine sense, so she didn¡¯t need to cultivate nature sense, she wanted to know the difference between the two right now.

    ¡°I actually don¡¯t know. It had stood out to me so in order to find out why I am going to take it.¡± Akata said respectfully telling the truth.

    ¡°I see, then I shall not stop you. What is your second item?¡± Second Elder was rather disappointed but she didn¡¯t let it show as she felt it was understandable. Akata was still just starting cultivation out so he really wouldn¡¯t know, especially since he doesn¡¯t have divine sense yet.

    Akata stood there thoughtfully for a moment and then said, ¡°For my second item I want a daoist technique. Specifically the World Omen of Lord Dullahan.¡± Akata spoke clearly and honestly.

    Second Elder looked deeply at him as he finished saying what skill he wanted, in fact Third Elder looked seriously at him for a moment too. Although most of the items in the Treasure Pavilion were useless to them, some of the items were pretty outstanding. One such item was the very World Omen of Lord Dullahan.

    It was dark skill meant for cultivators who wanted to become assassins. It was extremely adept and profound at assassination skills. Lord Dullahan was an ancient mythological figure that could kill anybody by just saying their name. He rode on a black horse and carried his own head in his hand. He was feared for his skills in killing and he ended up making this skill book. Of course his true skill book was something low tiered cultivators couldn¡¯t comprehend, the World Omen of Lord Dullahan was just a simplified version.

    ¡°Why would you want that technique? There are plenty others that are well suited towards you and in fact more powerful. Why choose this one?¡± Third Elder was the one to speak this.

    ¡°Although the World Omen of Lord Dullahan is an assassination daoist technique, it helps you cultivate many things. It improves your speed, power, agility, mental energy, etc. Not only that but it gives tips on how to use various weapons, including the scythe. I¡¯ve read over most of the techniques in the Treasure Pavilion and have found this one to be the most beneficial to me.¡± Akata spoke clearly and with earnest dignity. He sounded righteous as he spoke about this technique as if it was the most holy of skills.

    Second and Third Elder couldn¡¯t help but continue to look deeply at Akata and then smile wryly before nodding.

    ¡°If that is what you want then this can be your second item then. Now that you have gotten your two items it is time for me to test you. Grab your things and come with me.¡± Even though she had some misgivings she gave up in the end since Third Elder agreed to Akata getting the two things also.

    Akata went to the shelf that had the World Omen of Lord Dullahan and grabbed it. He went along with Second Elder to take his second test. Third Elder stood there thinking about what just happened. Nobody could know what he was thinking though. He eventually shook his head and swiped his sleeve, cleaning up the mess him and Second Elder made. Then he took a step forward and vanished from the Treasure Pavilion.This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

    Second Elder and Akata walked out of the Treasure Pavilion and stopped in front of the building by the guards.

    ¡°I¡¯ll take you to take my test right now, but the place I¡¯m taking you to is secret so you won¡¯t be able to see where we are going.¡± She didn¡¯t wait for Akata to agree and swished her sleeve towards Akata where he was picked up and vanished. She took a step forward and vanished.

    ¡°Was that Akata with Second Elder too? Just what kind of importance does he have to the sect?¡± One guard said looking confused and surprised.

    ¡°This is huge news, even I can¡¯t believe what I¡¯m seeing.¡± The other guard couldn¡¯t hold back his curiosity either as he voiced what he was thinking.

    Akata opened his eyes to find himself in a dark location. He looked around and couldn¡¯t see anything not even his hand in front of his face. He couldn¡¯t feel any wind, didn¡¯t feel hot or cold, or did he feel pressure from anything.

    ¡°Hello.¡±

    The sound didn¡¯t echo or anything it just stopped. As if it wasn¡¯t even there to begin with. Not only that but he could barely smell anything. All his senses had been restricted in this place.

    ¡®I wonder what this place is. It is so peculiar and strange. It¡¯s like I¡¯m in some kind of secluded dimension or something. Did Second Elder place me in here? I read that only people in the Nascent Rank has the ability to open their own dimension, and even then it isn¡¯t as big as this.¡¯ Akata was at a loss and couldn¡¯t figure out if he was in the process of taking the test or not. And if he was, what did he have to do.

    Akata eventually sat down in meditation and tried to use his nature sense to feel the environment. He tried to spread his nature sense out but it felt like something was blocking it. It was only able to spread out about a meter. ¡®Even my nature sense can¡¯t spread out. What do I do?¡¯

    Akata didn¡¯t get up but instead sat there in meditation trying to figure out what to do to get out of this place. He came up with many ways and even tried them out. He tried forcefully breaking his way out using his body strength, but all it did was push the air aside. He tried running as fast and as far as he could, even using his [Shadowfeet] skill, but to no avail. He even attempted to cast his Astral Obliteration but even after multiple tries and finally succeeding, it still couldn¡¯t break through.

    ¡°What the WHAT?! What kind of place is this. Nothing I try gets me out of here, I can¡¯t even see where I am.¡± Akata was getting frustrated and couldn¡¯t help but wail out to let loose some of his steam.

    He took in some deep breaths and eventually calmed down. He sat back down in meditation to recover his strength. Two hours passed while Akata was in meditation when his eyes snapped open and he jumped up from meditation and rolled to the side.

    Boom!

    The place he was just at was hit by some kind of blast from something. Akata couldn¡¯t see what did it or where it came from. All he did was feel the pressure in the area immediately become intense.

    ¡°Something is attacking me in here. How am I supposed to fight it when I can¡¯t see, hear, or smell it. Is this what the test is? I¡¯m supposed to fight this thing at a complete disadvantage?¡±

    Akata didn¡¯t stop as he ran away in the direction where it seemed like there was less pressure. He ran and ran but the pressure never lessened and in fact seemed to increase. ¡°It¡¯s getting closer to me? Looks like I won¡¯t be able to run away from this thing then.¡± Gritting his teeth he stopped running, turned around, and threw out a punch with his full power.

    The red rune in his soul region rotated under his command and when he threw his punch out the air was moved aside. But even after this, the pressure didn¡¯t lessen in the slightest. ¡°Did I even hit it? I can¡¯t see or feel anything right now.¡± He was at a complete loss of what to do but then an idea rang into his head.

    ¡°All of my senses have been severely restricted but I still have my nature sense. I¡¯m not able to use it while in motion though and it only spread out to a meter but it¡¯s better than nothing.¡± He sat down and immediately calmed his mind in order to connect with his surroundings.

    After a few breaths his mind was calm and he spread his nature sense out as far as it could go, then he waited for the right opportunity. He had to wait for his opponent to get in the range of his nature sense so that he could attack.

    After about ten breaths of time, Akata sensed something enter the range of his nature sense. It was a creature about 3 meters tall with black fur covering its body. It had three canine heads and sharp claws that dug into the ground wherever it stepped.

    ¡°What kind of creature is this?¡± Akata thought but then put the question out of his head as he rotated his red rune and clenched his hand into a fist. He then immediately punched out towards the three-headed dog and sent it flying.

    The whole process took less than a breath of time. Almost as soon as the three-headed dog entered his nature sense Akata had struck out. The dog was in the middle of unleashing an attack but didn¡¯t even have the opportunity to do so. It was caught completely off guard. Akata moved too fast just then! And he had to because by the time he started rotating his red rune his nature sense was fading away.

    ¡°If I¡¯m able to keep up my nature sense when I move then I¡¯ll be able to fight way better in here. Well now that I finished that weird dog off, I should have completed the test.¡±

    ¡°Good job Akata.¡± A voice that was soft and angelic reached Akata¡¯s ears. He instantly recognized it as Second Elder. ¡°You have completed my test for you. All your senses are restricted in this place and therefore you have to rely on your divine sense to scan and feel your surroundings. Since you don¡¯t have that you had to rely on your nature sense. Even though you had to use a different kind of sense you still completed my test, even if it was just barely.¡± Second Elder gave a light sigh and continued.

    ¡°Now that you have completed my test, you shall begin your training with me right away. The first part of training will consist of you staying in this place to enhance your nature sense. Until you¡¯re able to use it while in combat for at least thirty breaths of time then you can¡¯t leave this place.¡± After she finished speaking everything grew quiet as if she had never been there.

    Akata was left there standing blank faced with his mouth gaped open. It was hard enough to maintain his nature sense for less than a breath while he was moving, now he couldn¡¯t leave this place until he was able to maintain it for thirty breaths of time.

    Akata sank down and sat cross legged with his eyes closed in meditation. After a while his eyes snapped open to show his red eyes glowing with determination. ¡°If this is the training then I will complete it as fast as I can! I have no time to waste! thirty breaths of time isn¡¯t much anyways so let¡¯s get started!¡± As he thought this he rotated his red rune and let out a punch to the side where he sent another three-headed dog flying away. ¡°Tsk. Only half a breath. To beat this training I have to beat myself!¡±

    He closed his eyes again sank back into meditation where he spread his nature sense out.

 Chapter 23: I Can Let Loose Then?

    The three-headed dogs came at random times to ensure that Akata had to constantly be on alert. He had to constantly have his nature sense spread out which caused him to grow severely tired and drained a massive amount of his mental energy. If he didn¡¯t have such a strong mental strength he would¡¯ve put himself into a coma already.

    Akata sat there cross legged with beads of sweat dripping off of him. His red robe had long since been drenched and his face was pale. Akata clenched his teeth and forced himself to maintain his nature sense.

    He started rotating his red rune and stood up to kick an approaching three-headed dog. He didn¡¯t stop there as he turned around and punched the air behind him sending out a blast of air towards another one. After the punch he gasped for air and fell to the ground.

    ¡°It¡¯s been a week already and I can¡¯t keep this up for much longer. I¡¯m only able to maintain my nature sense in combat for about ten breaths of time. At this rate I won¡¯t be able to maintain it for thirty breath until about a month.¡± He suddenly jumped up from his spot and rolled to the side. Then he sent a punch out and sank back down to the ground.

    The three-headed dogs would come at random times. Sometimes they would appear right after one was defeated or even wait a few hours to show up again. At some times multiple three-headed dogs would appear at the same time and group up against Akata. This made it so he had to be on guard the whole time in this place.

    To be on guard the whole time put a lot of strain on anybody. One had to have a strong mentality otherwise they would go paranoid. Also to maintain any kind of sense whether it be divine or nature would cause the mental energy to be drained constantly.

    Each time Akata faced an opponent his nature sense would deplete and eventually run out so either he will be forced to finish his opponent off quickly or run away. Luckily the three-headed dogs were weak and he could easily defeat them one on one. But in cases where they grouped up it would get troublesome. After each time his nature energy was depleted he would have to sit in meditation again in order to build it back up and send it out again.

    ¡°How can I get this to go faster? I won¡¯t be able to constantly maintain my nature sense for a whole month. There has to be another way to fight with my nature sense for thirty breaths of time. Right now my nature sense can scan around me and reach two meters. I can also maintain it in combat for ten breaths of time.¡± Suddenly Akata¡¯s eyes went wide as he came up with an idea.

    By now Akata could spread his nature sense out to two meters. That was double what he could originally do before. Not only that but he could maintain it for ten breaths of time in combat. When he first started he could only last half a breath. In a week of training he improved greatly, even faster than Second Elder¡¯s expectations. But Akata still felt that it was too slow of progress, he wanted to go faster.

    Akata sat there in meditation waiting for another three-headed dog to appear. He sat there for a good while before one showed up. He stood up and this time didn¡¯t immediately punch out but instead retracted his nature sense back some. He retracted it until it only spread out to a meter. Then he commenced in attacking. He didn¡¯t rush the battle, and only until he felt that his nature energy was about to go out did he deliver the finishing blow.

    After the fight was finished Akata stood there for a moment and then gave a slight smile. ¡°Twenty breaths of time, just as I suspected.¡± He sat down in meditation and spread out his nature sense as far as it could go. He was going to try his own kind of training.

    Second Elder was somewhere looking on at Akata when she saw what he did. She gave a deep look and her eye twitched slightly. ¡°He¡¯s¡­ he¡¯s cheating.¡± Third Elder was right beside her and he let out a thunderous laugh. ¡°AHAHA! That Akata kid sure is crafty. He is definitely a genius when it comes to improving himself. I have a feeling he¡¯ll be out soon.¡±

    ¡°While in combat I¡¯ll restrict myself to a meter of nature sense, any less than that and it will hinder my fighting performance. When I¡¯m out of combat I¡¯ll attempt to strengthen my nature sense. When it is able to spread out to three meters then I¡¯ll be able to fight for thirty breaths of time.¡± His eyes glowed with anticipation as he began to train his nature energy and improve his nature sense.

    By cutting the range he sent his nature sense in half, he was able to maintain it twice as long. ¡°Keeping a calm mind is key to spreading out and strengthening your nature energy and strength. If I¡¯m able to stay calmer in combat I should be able to maintain my nature sense longer also.¡± Given his temperament staying calm in battle was very difficult for Akata. He had a naturally strong fighting will that caused his mind to race which combatted the effect of his nature sense in combat. But if he was able to control his fighting will while in combat he could maintain his nature sense.

    ¡°Controlling my fighting will would be almost impossible for me. Not to mention my attitude but the red rune in my soul region also incites my will to fight.¡± Akata went quiet and considered matters for a while before thinking of something.The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

    ¡°Well if that¡¯s the case the only way to get them to work together is to have one of them to change, and since my fighting will won¡¯t change then the state of my nature energy will have to. Nature energy is meant to be calm and undetected like a stalking predator trying to conceal themselves. But eventually that predator is going to lash out, in that case the state of the nature energy changes. It changes from one of calm and concealment to one of ruthlessness and speed. Everything uses the two sides of nature energy. The wind can be calm like a soft breeze or can be rough like with a storm. A predator conceals itself in order to stay hidden but then attacks with speed and power to get to its prey. I¡¯ve only practiced the calm side, and now it¡¯s time to unleash the wild side.¡±

    Akata sat there gaining enlightenment towards nature energy that slowly helped him to enhance his nature energy and nature sense. In meditation he would practice the calm side. But when the time came to fight he would unleash his fighting will and also the wild side of nature.

    Soon another three-headed dog came and Akata was ready for it. He stood up and retracted his nature sense to a meter in length. This time though the nature sense wasn¡¯t calm like it had always been when he fought but instead increased in pressure causing the air to vibrate.

    The three-headed dog immediately stopped in place. At first Akata seemed like a blade of grass that swayed in the wind, but when Akata stood up it felt like he turned into a giant that could crush it with nothing but a finger. The dog shrieked and tried to run away but how could Akata let it go just like that?

    Akata took a step forward and used his Shadowfeet skill. The lower half of his body seemed to blend in with his shadow as he sped foward in front of the dog in the blink of an eye. Akata had been using his skills and techniques non-stop for the past week so they naturally improved, especially his Shadowfeet skill. With all the running he did and hiding he tried to do his Shadowfeet skill reached the third level. There were a total of five levels in the complete skill and he had mastered the second one while running this whole time.

    Akata stood in front of the three-headed dog but didn¡¯t punch out. He knew that if he did then he could instantly kill the dog right now. This new use of nature energy flooded throughout his body causing him to feel baptized with power and speed he never felt before. He looked deeply at the dog and waved his finger towards it. ¡°Paragon¡¯s Blood¡±.

    The finger swipe cut into the dog causing it to be instantly killed and for blood to gush out. Akata waved his hand gathering the blood and he sat down in meditation. He used his Paragon¡¯s Blood skill to absorb the dogs blood.

    ¡°I never got the chance to absorb this creature''s blood since I was always on guard and worried about being attacked. It is a weird creature, even though there are many I can tell that they all come from the same animal. It is probably clones being sent after me. I wonder what secrets their blood holds.¡± Akata eyes shined brightly as he began to use his Paragon¡¯s Blood.

    The blood of the dog hovered in the air in front of him and then spread out to cover his whole body. The blood was then absorbed into his chest as he began using the technique. As he was absorbing the blood Akata kept his nature sense focused on his surroundings.

    After six hours Akata let out an, ¡°Eee?¡± sound as he finished absorbing the blood. ¡°This blood contains many secrets in it. Unfortunately it truly is only a clone and I won¡¯t be able to get any of those secrets from this single clone. But if I¡¯m able to get my hands on more clones then maybe I can unlock those secrets.¡± Akata¡¯s eyes glowed with greed and anticipation.

    He waited for more clones to appear and each time they did he would kill it instantly and absorb its blood. Since he would kill them instantly and begin absorbing their blood he didn¡¯t reach the thirty second mark he needed to complete the training. Eventually ten days passed by in a flash.

    Akata hadn¡¯t noticed the passage of time as he was obsessed with the blood of the three-headed dog. Each time he would absorb the blood of the clones he would feel like there was a secret hidden in the blood and that he would get closer to it, but no matter how much he absorbed he couldn¡¯t find that secret.

    ¡°These clones aren¡¯t working for me. I have to find the source of these clones and absorb that beasts blood, then I¡¯ll be able to unlock the secrets of this blood.¡± Akata finished absorbing another clone and realized that he wasn¡¯t going to get anywhere with them and figured that he needed to find the creature that produced them.

    Almost as soon as Akata finished his thought a roar sounded out. The roar was so powerful that Akata sensed it through his nature energy.

    ¡°What a powerful beast! It has to have the cultivation level at the Docile Rank Grade 3 at least!¡± Akata couldn¡¯t help but exclaim as the roar sounded out. Then his eyes glowed with a fierce light. ¡°This saves me much time. Once I absorb the blood of this beast I would have finished my training here.¡±

    Akata didn¡¯t move from his spot though. For one he knew the beast was going to come to him. For two he didn¡¯t want to deplete his nature energy by moving. Instead he spread his nature sense as far as it could go. By this time it had reached three meters.

    Akata didn¡¯t have to wait long as the beast reached him in a few moments. As it entered his nature sense, Akata saw the full view of it. It was a creature that stood six meters tall. It had three canine heads and long red claws that tore at the ground below it. Its body was covered in a deep black fur that made it look like an extension of the night. All six of its eyes were bloodshot and its four paws were enormous. It also gave off the aura of blood and death.

    The pressure that emanated off of it caused Akata to feel astonished for a moment, but he regained his composure right after.

    The three-headed dog stood in front of Akata baring its fangs and letting out growling noises. Akata took a deep breath and let it out slowly. He then stood up and converted his calm nature energy into one of complete roughness. The pressure around him intensified and fought off the pressure of the three-headed canine.

    The dog could sense the pressure coming from Akata and felt that it was actually pushing back his own. It didn¡¯t wait any longer as it rushed towards Akata brandishing its claws in an attempt to tear him apart.

    Akata gave a slight smile and used his Shadowfeet skill to evade the strike. He seemed to blend in with his shadow as he dodged the blow and appeared behind the dog. He pulled his arm back, clenched his hand into a fist, and punched out.

    The canine was a fast thinker too as, instead of turning around or trying to dodging, it used its tail to fight against the punch.

    Boom!

    The collision of the two caused the air to vibrate vigorously. The dog was pushed back by a few meters and looked astonished and then it looked mad as it let out a deafening roar. Akata stood in the same place as astonishment also covered his face. He was surprised to find that the dog withstood his attack without being injured in the slightest.

    ¡°So that means I can let loose then?¡± A smirk appeared across his face and his eyes started glowing with a deeper crimson red.

 Chapter 24: Akataâ€™s Ruthlessness

    Akata wasn¡¯t discouraged by the fact that the three-headed dog took on his hit and wasn¡¯t affected, instead he felt relieved. If he was able to severely injure it in one hit then that meant the creature was weak, so what would be the point of absorbing its blood. Although if it was weak he still would¡¯ve absorbed it anyway.

    The enraged dog pounced towards Akata with its fangs in an attempt to bite him. Akata increased the pressure of his nature energy to its full potential and also rotated his red rune. He stood in the same place and pulled his arm back once more and clenched his hand into a fist. The dog was jumping towards him and it was above him. Akata was under it, facing its fangs.

    Bang!

    Akata punched the nose of the dog and pushed it back about three meters. It landed on the ground with a ¡®thud¡¯ and blood oozed out of it. It whimpered some but managed to stand up once more to face Akata, its aura becoming more chaotic.

    Akata was pushed back about two meters which came as a huge surprise to him. ¡®It¡¯s able to push me back some?¡¯ He thought and then went in to charge at the dog. ¡®I¡¯ll just finish this up quickly.¡¯

    A red light flashed through his eyes as he charged at the dog. His hands were covered with a red glow that made it look like they were covered in blood. He was in front of the dog in an instant and punched out. ¡°Take this!¡±

    The fist strike was powerful and it approached with an astonishing speed. Wham! Akata¡¯s fist connected¡­ with the ground. ¡°Huh? What¡¯s going on? I could¡¯ve sworn that dog was right here.¡±

    Akata calmed his nature energy down and stretched it out to the maximum distance. ¡°There.¡± He rushed off in the distance and unleashed another punch but it was the same result. The punch just went straight through and the dog vanished.

    Akata was getting more and more frustrated as his attacks kept on missing. ¡°AAARGH! STOP HIDING YOU COWARD!¡±

    ¡°As you wish.¡±

    A cold voice filled with murderous intent locked onto Akata. It was so cold it made his spine shiver. He immediately spun his red and gold rune vigorously. A red and gold light emanated out of Akata¡¯s body. One of his eyes became a deeper crimson color while the other took on gold appearance. ¡®It can talk?!¡¯

    Akata turned around and struck out without hesitation. All this happened in the blink of an eye. From the time Akata heard the voice to the time he punched out. By the time he had turned around he could see a claw coming his way.

    Boom!

    The claw and the fist connected. Akata was pushed back five meters. The dog was also pushed back five meters. It was dead even.

    ¡®How does it keep gaining strength? Or is it just toying with me? No that shouldn¡¯t be the case considering that I caused it to bleed. It¡¯s sneak attacks are troublesome and if it continues to grow then I won¡¯t be able to handle it any longer.¡¯

    One of Akata¡¯s pupils were completely golden while the other was a deep red. Akata pulled his arm back and stood there. Soon an illusory rock the size of a fingernail appeared on top of his fist. The illusory rock seemed to glow with red and gold colors as it appeared. The pressure in the area became stifling and hard to bear.

    Soon the surrounding energy was being absorbed by the illusory rock at a shocking speed. Normally once Akata punched out and sent the rock flying it would automatically absorb energy. But now Akata was controlling it to absorb energy, this made the energy absorption process even more shocking.

    The illusory rock was soon the size of his head. Sweat dripped down from his forehead and his face was pale. ¡®This is my limit and can¡¯t absorb anymore.¡¯ Akata threw his fist out into the air. The illusory rock hurdled into the sky still absorbing the surrounding energy. Akata fell down to the ground and was heaving huge breaths.

    ¡°Hahaha brat you¡¯re pretty dumb. I admit I was a little scared by that technique of yours but it seems you can¡¯t even control it. Now since you¡¯re out of energy I happily rip you to shreds and take your blood just as you did my clones.¡± The voice was sinister and overbearing. It brought a sense of pressure down on Akata that he couldn¡¯t resist.

    The three headed dog slowly walked over to Akata savoring what it was about to do. A low growl could be heard coming from it and spit was drooling from its mouth. All of a sudden its face changed dramatically to become unsightly.This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

    ¡°Wha¡­ just what is that?! The pressure from it is outstanding. You! Brat! What did you do?! Was this your doing?! No it can¡¯t be, this is too much even for you.¡± All six of the dog''s eyes went wide as it looked up into the sky.

    What it saw was a giant meteor about ten meters long and wide coming down at a shocking speed. The pressure from it weighed down on the dog making sure that it couldn¡¯t move an inch. The fur on the dog had since become drenched in cold sweat. It lowered its head to look with fear at Akata. ¡°SPARE ME!¡±

    ¡°Since I¡¯ve already made the choice to absorb your blood then I have to go through with it.¡± Akata said this in the most calmest voice he had ever spoken. It was so calm that he himself was frightened by it. He shook his head and stood up. The pressure emanating off of him caused the dog to kneel down on the ground.

    Akata looked at the dog. He pointed his hand up toward the illusory giant meteor and took a deep breath. He lowered his hand to point straight at the dog. It was so frightened that it had actually peed itself.

    ¡°Thirty breaths.¡±

    BANG!

    The illusory meteor crushed the three headed dog without any resistance whatsoever. Since Akata was the controller of the technique then naturally it didn¡¯t hurt him in the slightest. It simply passed through him just like illusory items should. Akata waved his hand which caused the blood of the beast that was splattered everywhere to congregate together.

    The blood of the beast moved out to hover in front of Akata where he sat down and began absorbing it. After about ten hours he finally absorbed the last of the blood of the beast. He let out a long breath and sat there thinking.

    ¡°So that beast was a Hellhound and it had a cultivation base at the Docile Rank Grade 3? But the pressure that came from it made it seem like it was at least Grade 4, or even higher than that. The creatures that the Elders gather are all weird.¡± Akata shook his head as he came to this conclusion.

    ¡°In any case that blood helped me a lot. I was even able to increase my cultivation up to the 3rd Grade. The blood also contained a few techniques in it, but it¡¯s too bad most of them I can¡¯t cultivate. Like the Phantom Hounds technique, which allows for one to create clones. Unfortunately you can only use it if you were born with a piece of the founding Hellhound''s soul.¡± Akata shook his head rather disappointed but then his eyes lit up.

    ¡°But these two techniques that I can use are simply amazing. The Searing Heat of the Underworld skill which is an offensive technique and Demonic Wraith which acts as more of a support. It¡¯s too bad the Hellhound didn¡¯t have the time to use it against me.¡± Akata shook his head once more.

    ¡°This Searing Heat of the Underworld will allow me to cultivate hellfire which can even burn the soul into ash with ease. There are six levels to this technique, I can¡¯t wait to get started on this. And the Demonic Wraith skill allows me to do many things such as become invisible for a period of time, become intangible, and cause hallucinations. There are three levels to this and each one will improve the skill greatly.¡±

    Second Elder was watching the whole thing and between Akata and the Hellhound. She was surprised to see Akata improve at such an astonishing speed and even complete her first training session in such a short amount of time. To her it would¡¯ve taken a genius at least two months to complete her task, but Akata did it in a little over two weeks.

    Even though she was surprised by the speed of Akata¡¯s improvement, she was more astonished by fact Akata was able to fight the true body of the Hellhound. ¡°That last Hellhound had a cultivation base equivalent to the Mortal Rank Grade 4, a whole two levels above what Akata was at. Not only that, but in its fight against Akata, it was using its Demonic Wraith the whole time. Not to mention the invisibility the Hellhound was in or the hallucinations being thrown at Akata the whole time, but it was also intangible yet Akata was able to hit it multiple times.¡±

    She was truly astonished by the fact Akata was able to hit something that wasn¡¯t even in physical form. She was going to pull Akata out of the testing room but then thought that even he didn¡¯t know and so she just left him to absorb the blood. After he was done she took Akata out of the room.

    ¡°But what is frightening about all of this¡­ is that last technique he used. Even with his current cultivation base it was truly destructive. How can so much power be exhibited from him?¡±

    Akata opened his eyes to see himself in an all white room. It was none other than the Space-time Scenario Chamber. ¡°So I was in the Space-time Scenario Chamber after all?¡± When Akata was in the unknown place he had thought that he was in the formation room Third Elder had made. But he had pushed that thought aside as Second Elder said he was going to a different secret location. So he was surprised to see himself in the Space-time Scenario Chamber.

    ¡°No, you weren¡¯t in the Space-time Scenario Chamber just now. The place you were in was a separate dimension that is unknown to the rest of this world. That is why it is secret and why I didn¡¯t want to show you where it was. I just brought you here so that you can start your other training.¡± Second Elder appeared in front of Akata and made this statement. Her voice was calm as she spoke to him.

    ¡°I see.¡± Akata looked around and then thought of something. ¡°Umm Second and Third Elder¡­ what was that creature? How was it able to talk?¡± When the hellhound had spoken earlier it had truly stunned Akata.

    ¡°If mortals can learn to speak why can¡¯t other beings?¡± Second Elder replied.

    Akata was still confused but from the answer Second Elder gave he could tell that there was more to it than that.

    ¡°Great now that you have finally finished with that you have to challenge a cabin now. It has been about a week so go out there and challenge the seventh ranked disciple now.¡± Third Elder said almost joyfully.

    Akata nodded and bowed his head. ¡°Disciple will now go and challenge the seventh cabin.¡± He turned and headed toward the door to leave the Space-time Scenario Chamber.

    ¡°Oh and one more thing Akata.¡± Second Elder suddenly spoke out. Akata stopped in his tracks and turned to look at her. ¡°You¡¯re not allowed to use your runes in your cabin fights. So do be careful.¡± Her voice was soft and angelic like it had come from the heavens themselves.

    ¡°Ah?! No runes? Then how am I supposed to fight then?¡± Akata¡¯s eyes went wide and he began to panic. He had yet to fight without his runes. He truly didn¡¯t know to what extent he could go if he fought without them.

    ¡°What do you mean how are you supposed to fight? Just like every other cultivator, with magic and body skills. I¡¯m starting to think something really is wrong with you.¡± Third Elder voiced his thoughts as his eye twitched.

    ¡°B¡­ but I don¡¯t even know how to use magic properly. That means I¡¯ll only have my body to combat the seventh ranked person.¡± Akata was becoming increasingly flustered.

    ¡°Well then kid think of this as my training for you then. You¡¯re not allowed to use magic or your runes in this duel. I only want to see you use your body to fight your way to victory. First Elder is a body cultivator and he can beat Second Elder and I alone with just those skills. I¡¯m sure you can beat the seventh ranked person with just your body. But if you can¡¯t then you get a punishment.¡± Third Elder gave a cold smile and the air around him became weird.

    Akata could sense this change and he swallowed some saliva that was building in his throat. He didn¡¯t know what the punishment was or could be but he didn¡¯t want to find out. He nodded his head and then turned to leave out of the Space-time Scenario Chamber.

 Chapter 25: One Week

    One week ago

    News of Xiao Pao¡¯s defeat spread like wildfire across the sect. It had been forever since he was ranked below rank eight but now, not only was he beaten, he was beaten by Akata. Nobody could deny Akata¡¯s strength now as he proved himself capable of not only taking on people with his body but also his mental energy.

    ¡°I thought his body was tough but his mental strength is even more fearsome!¡±

    ¡°Have you ever seen Xiao Pao look that exhausted after a match? Yet Akata looked perfectly fine. Just what kind of mental strength does he have?¡±

    Of course the ranked disciples were discussing Akata also.

    Third Cabin

    ¡°That damn Akata! He¡¯s advancing at too fast a rate. Who would¡¯ve thought that trash of a cultivator could come so far. His body strength I can handle but his mental energy is on a whole other level. Gah!¡± Xi Fe gnashed his teeth as he cursed Akata. His face was red with anger. Clearly he was upset about Akata rising through the ranks so easily.

    Four people were seated at a table when news came of Akata¡¯s utter victory over Xiao Pao. Their previous conversation quickly steered in the direction of him.

    One boy that looked around 13-14 years old looked at a young girl and spoke. ¡°Ming Xu, I¡¯m pretty sure that Akata will keep challenging cabins which means that you will be the next one challenged. Are you ready to go through with the plan?¡± The person that was speaking was none other than Xiun Wu.

    Ming Xu looked at Xiun Wu deeply and then nodded her head. ¡°I¡¯ve been waiting for this moment. After our match has concluded he won¡¯t be ranked any longer in fact he won¡¯t have anything any longer.¡± Her voice and eyes were cold but when she looked at Xiun Wu a hint of admiration and devotion could be seen.

    ¡°Mn. Good then I¡¯ll leave you to it.¡± Xiun Wu seemed to think of something and then said, ¡°However is you are unsuccessful then if worse comes to worse I¡¯ll be able to hide you until I can settle things with the sect. Either way you have to be careful as it seems the sect is protecting Akata.¡±

    ¡°I got it. I won¡¯t mess up.¡± Ming Xu¡¯s eyes were fierce and her voice was firm.

    ¡°Humph. I want to personally tear him apart.¡± Xi Fe had been attacked and humiliated by Ming Lu because of Akata. Of course he held resentment in his heart from Ming Lu but she was still way stronger than him and there was nothing he could do, therefore he wanted to vent his anger on Akata. ¡°I still think that we should handle him before he is able to challenge the Ming Xu.¡±

    Xiun Wu shook his head and sighed, of course he knew that Xi Fe wanted revenge against Akata. ¡°And how do you expect to handle him before the match without anyone noticing?¡± Of course Xiun Wu was willing to hear him out, if Xi Fe actually had a good idea then it would make killing Akata more of a possibility.

    Xi Fe gave a cold smile. ¡°We can kill him in Misty Forest.¡± Xi Fe spoke every word slowly to make sure that they understood.

    Given their status in the sect and how much they had trained of course they knew where Xi Fe was going with this. All of their eyes went wide and they immediately went into thought. Xiun Wu was the first to speak on it after about five minutes of silence.

    ¡°That¡¯s not a bad idea at all. If we can catch him when he¡¯s training in Misty Forest then we¡¯ll be able to stage an ¡°accident¡± which will not put the blame on us.¡± Xiun Wu had a hand on his chin while he was talking and then looked up at Xi Fe.

    ¡°We shall try this before Akata challenges Ming Xu. If it is successful then that will make things way easier on us.¡± Everybody nodded their head in agreement.

    Xiun Wu looked to his left at a young girl about 15-16 years old dressed in brown furs. Her skin was pale and looked like jade. Her face held beauty that could not be topped by anyone in the sect besides Ming Lu.

    ¡°Pulong Chu, would you like to handle this?¡± The way he spoke to Pulong Chu was different from Xi Fe and Ming Xu. That was because she was just about at his level of strength, if she were to break through from Grade 3 to Grade 4 then they would be even.

    Her face was calm and held no anger in it whatsoever. There was no coldness that could be seen emanating from her, it was like she didn¡¯t even fit in with the group.Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

    When she spoke every word of hers carried a soft rhythm to it that made the hearts of all people go soft.

    ¡°I won¡¯t personally handle him but I¡¯ll send in some people who would be willing to.¡± She spoke with indifference like she didn¡¯t care what was going on. In fact Xi Fe and Ming Xu didn¡¯t even know if she was on their side of not.

    ¡°Good. That¡¯ll be all then. Shall we convent another time then?¡± Xiun Wu asked and looked towards Pulong Chu.

    ¡°Yeah sure. How about in a week. My people will have the job done as soon as they draw Akata into the forest.¡± With that she stood up and dusted herself off then turned to leave. Nobody stopped her they just watched as she left the cabin.

    Xi Fe frowned and turned to Xiun Wu. ¡°Xiun Wu why do you let her stay around? Clearly she has some ulterior motives if she¡¯s sticking to us.¡± Xi Fe was obviously displeased with Pulong Chu.

    Xiun Wu smiled and said, ¡°Yes it clearly does look like she has some other motives for being in our group, but the question is why is she deliberately showing us it? If she wanted to hide that fact away from us she could do a much better job of it but she isn¡¯t. If I keep her close and find out what it is she is going after then I¡¯ll be able to quickly dispatch her.¡± As he spoke his aura grew colder and colder to the point that Xi Fe and Ming Xu could see their own breath.

    ¡°But no worries that is a matter that I will personally attend to. There is no reason for you to concern yourselves of it. For now I want you, Xi Fe, to scout her and check on what happens in the forest when she gets Akata. I don¡¯t want you to intervene unless you see an opportunity to kill him, other than that just report back to me.¡±

    ¡°No problem.¡± Xi Fe¡¯s smiled coldly. ¡°He¡¯s as good as dead if he steps into that forest. The sect can¡¯t always protect him.¡±

    ¡°Mn. Ming Xu¡­¡± Xiun Wu turned his head to face Ming Xu who looked to be daydreaming. ¡°... Ahem. Ming Xu? Are you listening?¡± Ming Xu regained focused and looked at Xiun Wu. ¡°I want you to prepare for your match with Akata in case this plan fails.¡±

    ¡°Right!¡± Ming Xu¡¯s face was blushed red with embarrassment.

    ¡°Good. That¡¯s all for now go back and prepare. Akata should be making an appearance any day now.¡±

    Ming Xu nodded and stood up then walked out of the third cabin to the seventh. ¡®What was I doing just now fading away like that? No matter I just have to prepare to face Akata and once he¡¯s out of the picture all will be solved.¡¯ At this, Ming Xu picked up some speed to get back to her cabin.

    One week later

    Akata emerged from Second and Third Elder¡¯s shed. It was a cool evening, the clouds were spread out in the sky covering over the sun but the blue sky could still be seen. Akata walked the path out of the Elder Quarters towards the disciples residences.

    ¡®I haven¡¯t seen my friend in a while. I wonder how is she doing. Ha I can¡¯t wait to show her how strong I¡¯ve become now!¡¯ Akata¡¯s face had a huge smile on his face as he walked down the path. As he trotted along he came across some disciples and even some Elder¡¯s.

    Akata stopped and greeted an Elder of the sect. ¡°Greetings Fourth Elder.¡± The Elder was seated on a barrel drinking wine from a flagon. He wore brown furs and he looked deeply at Akata. Out of all the Elder¡¯s he looked the youngest, about his mid twenties, that was because he was the only one to breakthrough to the Earthly Rank. Of course this excluded First, Second, and Third Elder who were mysterious even within the sect.

    ¡°Akata, come here for a second.¡± Fourth Elder spoke in a deep brooding voice. Akata was confused for a moment and then headed over to Fourth Elder. He walked over to him and stood there.

    Fourth Elder took a gulp from his flagon of alcohol and then spoke. ¡°You¡¯ve grown a lot in such little time Akata. I¡¯d say you¡¯re even more talented than I was when I was your age. I believe that you have the capabilities to surpass me. But, not in this place. Be careful and watch yourself.¡± He took another gulp of alcohol and waved Akata off.

    Akata was more confused now. He tried to Fourth Elder to answer some more questions but he didn¡¯t. Akata eventually walked off feeling wary of the whole situation. ¡®What does he mean by be careful and watch myself? Does he resent the sect? Or is he another spy? No no he¡¯s the fourth Elder he shouldn¡¯t be a spy. But¡­ what if¡­¡¯ Akata didn¡¯t know what to think right now and was lost in thought as he walked along the path.

    Eventually he made it to the place that housed the disciples. As he approached he cleared his mind of the words of Fourth Elder and shook his head. ¡®Now is not the time to think about these things. For now it probably doesn¡¯t concern me and if it does, if it involves the sect I don¡¯t have the power to do anything.¡¯ He then went to a particular building.

    The building was adorned with unlit red lanterns. A banner could be seen hanging on the front of the building. On the banner could be seen a red cloud with black lightning coming out. But the lightning was aimed towards the sky. As if it was striking heaven itself. Of course this was the sect¡¯s symbol which was common to see throughout the sect.

    The sect split the disciples up between girls and boys. The disciples didn¡¯t live in immortal caves but in places that resembled inns. In fact this section of the sect was called the Red Cloud Inns. All the girls stayed in one building while the boys stayed in another. Of course, you could have your own space if you owned a cabin though.

    Akata stood outside of the Red Cloud Inns for girls and called out to his friend. He sucked in a deep breath and yelled, ¡°PEIZHI XIUYING!¡± His voice carried throughout the inn, alerting all the girls in there. Some girls were startled and looked through the window, others came outside to see who it was, while the last few simply ignored. However there was one girl who just smiled, seemingly warming the surrounding atmosphere. She immediately ran down and out of the inn and straight into the arms of the boy who had just yelled out.

    Akata was startled by her speed but nonetheless he wrapped his arms around her and held tightly. She cried out, ¡°Akata where have you been?! It¡¯s been forever since we¡¯ve seen each other it¡¯s like you don¡¯t like me anymore. I¡¯ve heard so much has happened since I last saw you. You have to tell me all about it and¡­¡± She talked on and on but Akata really didn¡¯t mind. He still had his arms wrapped around her waist as she talked.

    Eventually she calmed herself down and backed up. It was at this moment that Akata could finally see her fully. She was a beautiful girl about 13-14 years old. She wore white furs that made her look a deity that descended into nature. Her flowy black hair came down to her back like a calm waterfall. Her jade like skin sparkled in the sunlight making it hard for anyone to take in her beauty. To Akata and everyone else she was a peerless beauty that couldn¡¯t be contested.

    ¡°Humph!¡± As she backed up her face turned as red as a tomato as she made an angry face towards Akata. ¡°All these things you¡¯ve been through and you haven¡¯t even talked to me about it. We have to catch up immediately! Come come let¡¯s go to my room and talk.¡± She grabbed Akata by the arm and turned toward the inn.

    Akata¡¯s face turned red and his breathing became unsteady as he pulled her back. ¡°Uh¡­ umm¡­ how about we go to my cabin instead? Haha. That way nobody can disturb us even if they wanted to.¡± Akata rubbed the back of his head as he suggested.

    Peizhi Xiuying didn¡¯t seem to mind either way so she instantly nodded her head with a smile and turned and walked with Akata toward the training field with the cabins. Even as she walked she still had Akata¡¯s arm in her grasp.

 Chapter 26: Become A Man

    Peizhi Xiuying and Akata walked towards the Seventh Cabin which was where Akata stayed at. Throughout the whole walk Peizhi Xiuying held onto Akata¡¯s arm without letting go of it once. They didn¡¯t talk much and just enjoyed the scenery as they hadn¡¯t done in a while. Other disciples saw them together and talked amongst themselves about their relationship.

    ¡°It¡¯s been a while since I¡¯ve seen them two together.¡±

    ¡°I thought they were apart considering how long they¡¯ve been away from each other.¡±

    ¡°I wish I had a girl like Peizhi Xiuying to hold onto me like that.¡±

    Of course the disciples weren¡¯t being quiet so Akata and Peizhi Xiuying could hear what was being said about them. Akata¡¯s face turned bright red as he heard some of the things being said. He didn¡¯t speak up though but instead let out continuous sighs.

    Peizhi Xiuying on the other hand smiled brightly as if she didn¡¯t care what was being said. In fact when she started hearing the disciples her smile grew bigger and she drew in closer to Akata.

    ¡°Sister Xiuying you don¡¯t have to act like this. I can take care of myself now. You don¡¯t have to pretend to be with me like you didn all those years ago to help me out.¡± Akata couldn¡¯t help but make this statement quietly to Peizhi Xiuying so that only she could hear it.

    She frowned slightly and stopped in her tracks. She looked at Akat, stamped her foot down and then spoke in a clear quiet voice that could melt anyone¡¯s heart if they listened in on it. ¡°Humph! Who said I was pretending back then?¡± She didn¡¯t say anymore and let go of Akata¡¯s arm and started walking on her own.

    Akata was taken back by what he heard and eventually let out a long sigh. He had heard this countless times before but even so they were still never together. He shook his head and sought to catch up to her.

    After walking for a while they eventually made it to Akata¡¯s cabin. Peizhi Xiuying looked around in amazement and awe. All of the wonderful flowers in the area left her with a sense of familiarity.1

    ¡°This is so beautiful. So this is what it is like to live in the cabins?¡± She looked around at the scene of beautiful flowers and all the diverse display of colors. ¡°I¡¯ve decided to become stronger just a own a cabin like this. It is just simply too amazing.¡±

    Akata smiled and looked on. Of course he knew that Peizhi Xiuying loved flowers. He had brought her to his cabin not only for the privacy but also to show her this view. In his mind he was truly pleased. ¡®I¡¯m glad she got to see it and feel happy.¡¯

    He finished his train of thought and then spoke out. ¡°Sister Xiuying I want to repay you for helping me¡­ no¡­ for being there for me all these years. If there is anything I can help you with I will be glad to do it.¡± He smiled as he talked. Right now his heart was at peace along with his mind.

    Peizhi Xiuying stopped looking around for a moment and put a hand on her chin as if she were thinking. ¡°Ah! I know what you could do hehe. I have three things you can do actually.¡±

    Akata was surprised that she came up with something so quick but didn¡¯t let it bother him as he nodded his head. ¡°Okay what are they?¡±

    ¡°The first thing I want you to do is¡­ take me to Misty Forest!¡± She said this as clear as day without any hint of hesitation in her voice.

    ¡°Take you¡­ to Misty¡­ Forest? Wh¡­ why? Are you not scared of being attacked or killed? That place is extremely dangerous for you.¡± Akata was caught off guard with her first request. The first request alone was already this outrageous yet there were still two more? He almost wanted to cry for agreeing to three requests.

    ¡°In Misty Forest there are said to be beautiful flowers everywhere in there, flowers that don¡¯t appear out here. I want to be able to see that beauty that nature was able to create. If you were anybody else I definitely wouldn¡¯t ask you of this but¡­ you¡¯ve trained in Misty Forest before, you¡¯ve become strong in no time at all. And most importantly I know that you wouldn¡¯t let anything happen to me. I trust you and I know that if I go in there with you that I will be okay.¡± Her voice was soft yet within it could be heard the love for one another.

    The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

    Akata was left there standing with blank eyes as he tried to comprehend what was being said. After a good amount of time he smiled and said with an equally sift voice, ¡°Okay. I¡¯ll take you to Misty Forest but only to the outer perimeter where it is safest. No farther than that got it!¡±

    Peizhi Xiuying jumped for joy and yelled out, ¡°Yay!¡±

    Akata yelled out in a serious voice, ¡°No! I mean it only the outer perimeter! If¡­ if anything happens to you I¡­ I won¡¯t know what to do with myself. I couldn¡¯t face the sect, I couldn¡¯t face the Elder¡¯s, I couldn¡¯t face myself if anything bad was to happen to you so please when we are in there stay by my side¡­ so that I can protect you.¡± Akata started tearing up as he talked on.

    Peizhi Xiuying stopped jumping and she became serious too. ¡°I¡¯m¡­ I¡¯m sorry. I forgot just how dangerous Misty Forest is. It¡¯s just that you train in there so I figured that you would find that place as easy to live in as a paradise. But that¡¯s not the case at all is it. You probably go through many things in there that can kill you at any moment yet I asked you to take me there and not only protect yourself but protect me as well.¡± Tears started appearing on her face as well.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I¡¯m so sorry. I didn¡¯t take into account your feelings. About what would happen to you if something happened to me. And I would be devastated if something happened to you while you were protecting me. No¡­ I take that first one back I don¡¯t want it anymore.¡± By now tears were streaming down her face as she spoke.

    Akata walked up to her and wiped the tears off of her face. ¡°No no. I was just scared that something would happen to you. Don¡¯t worry! I will protect you no matter the cost while we are in there and you will get to see all the flowers you want! I promise you this. Not only will I keep you safe from harm but I too will be safe as well.¡± Akata said with decisiveness.

    Peizhi Xiuying giggled softly and wiped the remaining tears off of her face. She stepped in closer to Akata and gave him a big hug. Akata in turn hugged her too. They stayed that way for a few minutes and then separated.

    ¡°Now then what are your other two requests.¡± Akata said but in his mind he was thinking, ¡®I hope it¡¯s not as crazy as the first one.¡¯ He inwardly sighed.

    ¡°Umm¡­ I don¡¯t want to use them yet so can I hold onto them?¡±

    ¡°Uh, sure I guess so.¡±

    ¡°Good hehe.¡± Peizhi Xiuying was enlivened once more.

    ¡°Well if that¡¯s it then we can head out to Misty Forest anytime.¡± Akata secretly breathed a sigh of relief. ¡®I¡¯m glad maybe when she requests her final things in the future I¡¯ll be strong enough to complete them with no problem.¡¯

    ¡°We can head out now if you¡¯d like. I was actually packing to go into Misty Forest myself before you came.¡± Peizhi Xiuying said with an innocent look on her face. Her voice becoming softer as she spoke her words. She looked at Akata who was glaring at her and then she put her head down in shame.

    Akata shook his head and then sighed. He wanted to scold her once more but he decided not to do it this time and instead thought that she learned her lesson. ¡°Alright, heading out now is fine too. I don¡¯t need anything to pack so let¡¯s go now then.¡± Akata said with a smile on his face.

    His smile made Peizhi Xiuying feel admiration from his display of confidence. ¡°Mn. Okay.¡± She said with a slight smile. Her smile instantly enlivened the atmosphere that had just been stifling the area. They soon started walking on their way towards Misty Forest with Akata leading the way.

    On the way Akata greeted many disciples who wanted to talk with him. Of course some of them were doing this to get close to someone with power yet others truly wanted to get to know him for who he was. Akata didn¡¯t care what was the reason but he spoke with all of the people who came his way. He was kind by nature and therefore couldn¡¯t turn down someone who just wanted to talk. Of course being kind only applied to those who he didn¡¯t see as malicious or who he hated.

    Talking with all the people had taken a toll on the time they used to get to Misty Forest. By the time they arrived to the outside of the forest the sun was already setting. Akata would have sped up the process but Peizhi Xiuying said that she didn¡¯t mind as she liked to listen in on the conversations.

    However one conversation Akata had with a cultivator that was in his mid twenties almost made her run away.

    ¡°Given how strong you are becoming you¡¯re bound to have women coming your way, if not now then definitely later.¡± He had said.

    ¡°¡±Uhh¡­ umm¡­ sure I guess. I don¡¯t really pay attention haha.¡± Akata replied as his face began to glow red.

    ¡°Come on you can tell me.¡± The man got in closer to Akata¡¯s ear and began to whisper. ¡°What kind of women do you like? Busty? Petite? Come and tell me.¡± It was then that the man looked over to Peizhi Xiuying who was standing a little behind Akata. ¡°Ah! My fault silly me! You already have a girl with you! Well then¡­¡± He leaned in a bit closer to where Akata could feel his breath when he spoke. ¡°Have you¡­ felt what it is like to be a man? Hahaha!¡±

    Akata¡¯s face became a bright red and he was left speechless. He truly didn¡¯t know what to say just now. He awkwardly laughed with the man and rubbed the top of his head. The man took this as a sign and immediately patted Akata on the back. ¡°Good! Good! That¡¯s the best part of being strong!¡±

    It was then that Akata was left even more dumbstruck and responded. ¡°Ah! No no no! It¡¯s not like that!¡± He cried trying to cover up his previous mistake of being silent.

    In the back Peizhi Xiuying could actually hear everything the man said, considering that he was talking with the same volume even when he moved in closer to Akata. Her whole face was as red as a pepper and her eyes were wide open. Her breathing became haggard and sweat started to form on her forehead. She looked at Akata who was nervously rubbing his head and the man spoke a second time.

    Even after Akata explained to the man that this was all just a misunderstanding she didn¡¯t lose her embarrassment.

    The man looked back and forth between Akata and Peizhi Xiuying. He stooped in closer to Akata and said, ¡°It¡¯s alright kid I get it! You¡¯re trying to get that lovely lady there! Don¡¯t worry once she realizes your strength you¡¯ll definitely become a man soon! Hahaha!¡± The man turned around and walked off.

    Akata was left standing there twitching his eye as he watched the man who was walking away. Eventually he gave a long sigh and shook his head, not putting in any further effort to explain himself.

    He turned around to look at Peizhi Xiuying who was behind him. Her face was as bright as ever almost like the blood in her face was about to burst out. ¡°My fault about that¡­¡± He said rubbing the back of his head.

    Peizhi Xiuying didn¡¯t say anything and instead walked aimlessly past Akata as she continued on the path towards Misty Forest. Her eyes blank, she meandered her way to the forest.

    Akata gave another long sigh and followed right after her.

    1. Xiuying translated from chinese to english can have the meaning of beautiful flower

 Chapter 27: Akata The Teacher

    Akata and Peizhi Xiuying stood outside of Misty Forest staring inside of it. Peizhi Xiuying had a worrying look on her face and her breathing was uneven. Akata was in front of her but he could sense her worried state. He turned around and smiled then said, ¡°It¡¯s alright. I¡¯m here to protect you.¡±

    Peizhi Xiuying gave a smile back and nodded her head. They both then proceeded along into the forest. Peizhi Xiuying walked behind Akata but she stuck closely to him.

    Akata had spread out his nature sense which took on a calm and silent aura. It spread out to cover over him and Peizhi Xiuying and when it did it was almost like they were predators hidden in plain sight.

    In Akata¡¯s training all his senses had been restricted greatly but now that he was out they flourished like never before. At first his nature sense could only spread out to ten meters at max, but after his training with Second Elder it could reach thirty with no problem. He could also sustain it three times longer than he could before, even when moving.

    His nature sense had covered the area, watching anything that seemed dangerous. If ever he came across something that he deemed as a threat he would simply move around it, however most of the threats they encountered were just Docile Rank Grade 1 or 2 creatures.

    In those situations Akata would instantly kill it without it even noticing his presence. Even though Akata felt bad about killing these innocent creatures he did it anyway to further protect Peizhi Xiuying. ¡®This is just how the world works. The weak are just subject to the strong.¡¯ He would think to himself after every kill.

    On one occasion Akata saw a Docile Rank Grade 4 Blood Rabbit and stopped moving instantly. This had left Peizhi Xiuying to become apprehensive. Akata stayed still for about ten breaths with his eyes closed until he opened them again and moved in another direction.

    ¡°What was that about Akata?¡± Peizhi Xiuying asked.

    ¡°There was a Blood Rabbit ahead of us just now. It had a mid stage Docile Rank cultivation base. I might have been able to handle it in a fight but I didn¡¯t want to risk it. Although it was weird for it to be this close to the outer zone I¡¯m not going to find out why. For now let¡¯s keep on moving.¡±

    Peizhi Xiuying nodded her head and kept on moving. After about two hours of roaming they found a clearing in the forest. ¡°Let¡¯s rest here for now and then move out in the morning.¡± Akata suggested. By now the sky was completely dark and the moon¡¯s rays couldn¡¯t penetrate through all the trees.

    ¡°Mn. Okay.¡± Peizhi Xiuying wasn¡¯t tired but she knew that dangers could lurk in the darkness and therefore thought it was a good idea to wait out the night. They quickly set up camp and soon afterwards Peizhi Xiuying fell asleep.

    Even though Akata fought all the creatures he wasn¡¯t the least bit tired, on the contrast he was energetic. Akata had been studying the World Omen of Lord Dullahan technique which taught many assassination skills. As he was proceeding along in the forest earlier he was actually practicing his skills, slowly polishing them up.

    ¡®Just the first chapter is this great. The first chapter only teaches about hand-to-hand combat and assassination which is good for me since I have yet to learn how to use my scythe.¡¯ Akata then pulled the scythe out and inspected it.

    He stood up and walked away from the camp some. Even though he was away and couldn¡¯t see the camp, his nature sense could still feel it vividly as if he was standing in the middle of it. He held his scythe in one hand as he spread his nature sense out trying to find other creatures.

    ¡®I¡¯ll first clear out this area to ensure that it is safe.¡¯ His red robe swayed as he dashed off in a particular direction. Soon in front of him he could see a Fanged Monkey. ¡®Cultivation level is at Docile Rank Grade 2. One hit one kill.¡¯

    His nature energy was soft and concealed his aura making him undetectable. When he got into range he quickly activated his Shadowfeet skill. His lower body became dark and blended in with his shadow, increasing his speed explosively. Just when he was right by the Fanged Monkey scythe in air his aura made an abrupt change, It became wild and ruthless and locked onto the Fanged Monkey. The Fanged Monkey became stiff from fear and couldn¡¯t move anywhere, the next moment its head was chopped off from its shoulders.

    As soon as the head was chopped Akata¡¯s nature energy became calm again as if it was a flowing river on a peaceful day. Akata stood there and waved his hand collecting the blood of the Fanged Monkey. The blood converged and then shrunk into a ball the size of a palm where Akata absorbed it into his self.A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

    ¡®It will take time to absorb so I should wait until I get back to camp that way I¡¯ll be right by Peizhi Xiuying.¡¯ He didn¡¯t use his Paragon¡¯s Blood technique but instead stored the blood in his soul region along with his runes in order to absorb later.

    With that Akata moved in another direction and soon another head was chopped off. Then another and another. Every time Akata changed directions a head would surely be chopped off soon after. He would wave his hand to collect the blood and then move on to the next location. This was how Akata passed time until the area around the camp was clear and devoid of any creatures.

    ¡®That should do it. The camp should be safe for a good amount of time. Without the smell of blood it will take longer for the other creatures to fill this place up again.¡¯ With a look of satisfaction Akata headed back to the camp. Throughout the whole time his nature sense had been in use and had the camp in his view.

    Soon he got there and sat next to Peizhi Xiuying cross legged. He took a deep breath and and opened his mouth where a ball of blood flew out. The ball of blood wasn¡¯t that big, only about the size of a palm but the density of all the accumulated blood made it seem like a deep pool. A bloody aura spread out from the ball and Akata looked at it closely.

    After looking it over Akata nodded his head. ¡®Time to refine it.¡¯ He thought to himself. He held a hand in the air towards the ball of blood and then made a closing gesture. The ball of blood started to shrink in on itself becoming smaller as Akata slowly made a fist. The aura of blood began to increase as it did which put a bright gleam in Akata¡¯s eyes.

    The ball of blood was now about half the size it had been when it stopped shrinking. Akata looked thoughtfully for a moment and breathed out. ¡®That¡¯s my limit, I can¡¯t go any further.¡¯

    Refining blood was something Akata rarely did. That was because it was used to make a large accumulation of blood more effective and also decrease absorption speed. However Akata hadn¡¯t really gone on any killing sprees to accumulate so much blood. This was actually his first time.

    Even while he was in the secret place Second Elder sent him he couldn¡¯t go on a killing spree. That was because the creatures that attacked him came at random times and also he was weak and didn¡¯t feel safe absorbing blood in the middle of that place.

    But now Akata could truly use Paragon¡¯s Blood to some of its full extent and potential. The ball of blood flew to his forehead to be absorbed. The effect of the start of the absorption process was amazing and much more smoother than before.

    Akata quickly absorbed the blood taking in everything it had to offer from immortal cultivation energy to memories. Since he had previously absorbed the blood of these creatures he had already unlocked the secrets in their blood and therefore knew the techniques of these creatures. It was in this fashion that Akata quietly broke through to Mortal Rank Grade 3.

    When he broke through he could feel that his muscles and bones had hardened to an astounding degree. His senses were now twice as powerful as they had been. Impurities leaked out of his skin cleansing his body, mind, and soul. This type of feeling was blissful and soothing.

    ¡®This works even better than expected!¡¯ Akata was instantly surprised. ¡®Even though I was at the peak of Grade 2, I didn¡¯t expect to break through for a couple more days. And there is still some blood left over.¡¯ Akata didn¡¯t stop absorbing the blood or save it for later.

    One reason was because he wasn¡¯t able to absorb new blood until he was done with this one. And also he couldn¡¯t refine new blood into old blood that was already refined. However he was still excited that he reached Mortal Rank Grade 3 so quickly.

    After reaching Grade 3, fully absorbing the rest of the blood became much easier. He quickly absorbed it and then washed himself off. Some of the impurities in his body had been expelled causing a black gel-like liquid to ooze out of his skin.

    After cleaning himself off he went straight to sleep.

    The sun was just rising in the sky illuminating the forest below it. Even though the trees blocked most of the light, the sun¡¯s rays were powerful enough to get past some of the leaves. A beam of light showed on Akata¡¯s face disturbing him. He wrinkled his nose and opened his eyes then sat up.

    He looked around, still drowsy from being woken up and then gave a big yawn. After rubbing his eyes he stood up and started walking towards Peizhi Xiuying.

    She was in the middle of camp boiling some water in order to cook some meat. After seeing Akata wake up she smiled and yelled out to him, ¡°Good morning sleepy head.¡± She tilted her head and gave a slight chuckle.

    Akata¡¯s face turned slightly red and he yelled back, ¡°You¡¯re up early aren¡¯t you? Anyways what are you making?¡± He asked curiously. He rubbed the side of his face where a leaf fell down from. He noticed the leaf had a charred spot on it.

    He looked at the fire Peizhi Xiuying had and then said, ¡°Careful don¡¯t want to burn down the forest haha.¡± He then walked over to sit beside her.

    Peizhi Xiuying gave a ¡°humph.¡± and continued to boil the water. After a while she tossed in some meat and a couple vegetables. ¡°I¡¯m making some stew for us. Since it¡¯s going to be a long day I at least want us to have a full stomach.¡±

    ¡°Mn. I see. Well it smells really good. I bet it will taste even better.¡± He said with his mouth watering up. He licked the corner of his lips and stretched his hand out to the pot. Peizhi Xiuying also reached her hand out and smacked Akata¡¯s hand. ¡°No no you have to wait until it¡¯s done.¡± She said and then proceeded to stir and cover it up.

    After a little while she fixed their bowls and they both ate together. They spoke about the past and how Akata would try to protect her even though she was stronger than him. They talked about Akata becoming a ranked cabin disciple so quickly. They talked about pretty much everything they could.

    ¡°That¡¯s enough about me, what about you. I¡¯m sure you have been working hard to cultivate lately.¡± Akata said while making himself another bowl, this being his fourth.

    ¡°I¡­ compared to you I¡¯m terribly weak. I¡¯m still at the 2nd Grade of the Mortal Rank. I can¡¯t find anyway to advance any further than that. I guess this is just my limit haha.¡± Peizhi Xiuying laughed. ¡°I wish I could become stronger but I don¡¯t think I was meant to.¡±

    Akata looked deeply at Peizhi Xiuying for a moment before nodding his head. He put down his fourth bowl and stood up. He looked at Peizhi Xiuying, who was rather confused right now, and said, ¡°Then I shall get you to advance further in your training! Believe it or not this is the perfect place for training in cultivation. If I¡¯m unable to get you to Grade 3 by the time we are done I¡¯ll let you stay in my cabin.¡± He said this resolutely with determination.

    Peizhi Xiuying looked back at him with surprise and immediately shook her head. ¡°No no no! It¡¯s alright you don¡¯t have to do all that. I don¡¯t want your cabin anyways and besides if I couldn¡¯t get to Grade 3 there¡¯s no need for someone else to worry about me getting there.¡± She spoke quickly trying to dissuade Akata.

    ¡°Nope I¡¯ve already decided that I¡¯m going to get you to Grade 3. However you will have to be put into some danger though, but don¡¯t worry your life won¡¯t be at risk. I¡¯ll get you to Grade 3 if it¡¯s the last thing that I do.

 Chapter 28: Flora Rank

    Akata didn¡¯t speak anymore and sat back down. He grabbed his bowl and began to eat again, this time a wide smile on his face. Sometimes between eating he would let out a little chuckle here and there.

    Peizhi Xiuying felt helpless and shook her head. She stood up and decided to clean up camp. While she was cleaning sighs could sometimes be heard coming from her direction.

    ¡®This is my chance to pay her back! Once she¡¯s at the 3rd Grade she will definitely have the strength to get her own cabin. Then that¡¯ll make us even.¡¯ Akata was still smiling away as he thought this.

    After he finished his bowl he helped clean up with Peizhi Xiuying and then they went along their path again. This time Akata stood side by side with her instead of ahead scouting.

    ¡°Now I have a couple of ways to train you to get to the 3rd Grade. However most of them I don¡¯t feel comfortable with yet so I¡¯ll have to see what level of strength you¡¯re at now.¡± He finished speaking and then pointed over in a particular direction. ¡°There¡¯s a Blood Rabbit over there at the 1st Grade of the Docile Rank. You should be able to handle it by yourself so let me see you do it.¡± About twenty meters away a small Blood Rabbit could be seen eating on a frog.

    Peizhi Xiuying was surprised by Akata¡¯s acute sense of his surroundings. She nodded her head and then took a deep breath. She flashed an incantation gesture and then pointed at the Blood Rabbit. The Blood Rabbit stopped chewing on the frog and looked around as if it could sense something. All of a sudden it dashed away.

    But before it could move more than a meter away a vine sprung up from the ground and wrapped around it. The Blood Rabbit struggled and struggled but to no avail. Peizhi Xiuying waved her finger and the vine moved towards her along with the Blood Rabbit.

    Once the Blood Rabbit was in front of her she flashed another incantation gesture. ¡°Drain.¡± The vine holding the Blood Rabbit started to appear with flowers. A total of ten flowers appeared on the vine in an instant. The flowers were white and the scent that emanated out of them made everything calm.

    She then closed her hand into a fist where the vine grew tighter and the Blood Rabbit started to turn pale. All of the Blood Rabbit was turning pale and soon one of its paws was completely white in color. When that happened one of the flowers on the vine turned red. Soon more flowers turned red until all ten of them were a crimson color. By that time the Blood Rabbit was completely white in color. All the blood that was in the Blood Rabbit was utterly drained from it. Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s face was calm the whole time.

    Akata was taken aback by what he saw just then. ¡®Her Grand Life Vine technique has made major improvements since I last saw it. The distance it is able to reach has increased by a lot and it is even capable of draining the blood of its opponents now.¡¯ Akata was in shock by what he saw. He finally managed to clear his throat and nod.

    Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s face was pale by now but she gritted her teeth and flashed another incantation gesture. The red flowers on her vine then bloomed. It was a beautiful scene watching the flowers slowly bloom to life. As they did it was possible to tell that they were actually lotus flowers.

    She whispered to Akata. ¡°While white is a sign of calm and peace, red can mean anything you choose it mean. Love, compassion, war, demons, etc. The white lotus is a peace symbol. But when my lotus blooms I want it to be red so that people can make their own symbol out of it.¡± Her voice was soft and timid and made Akata feel as if he had gained a new understanding of something.

    She finished her incantation gesture and the vine moved towards her. She reached her hand out and plucked a single lotus from it. She put the lotus to her nose and sniffed it. As she sniffed it a pollen like substance rose up from it to enter her nose. When it entered her nose Akata could sense her aura was rising and becoming faintly more powerful.

    ¡®She¡¯s able to absorb blood in that way? Even though it is much weaker than absorbing blood directly, that vine is able to refine blood in order for it to be absorbed. What clan does she come from that trains in that ability?¡¯ Akata was shocked in his mind but it didn¡¯t appear on his face.

    After Peizhi Xiuying finished sniffing the red lotus it turned white. Then it withered away into dust and flew away with the wind. She didn¡¯t go to pick another lotus but instead spoke out. ¡°My Grand Life Vine technique wasn¡¯t always like this. It used to just restrict the movement of who I pleased, but after training it to a higher level I found out it could do this.¡±

    She turned to Akata with tears in her eyes and then spoke, ¡°Tell me¡­ what does the red in my lotus mean?¡± Akata was shocked once more and went to hold her. Peizhi Xiuying cried out, ¡°I thought this technique from my clan was beautiful but instead it is used to hurt others. I¡­ I don¡¯t want to use it to get stronger if I have to kill in order to do it.¡±The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

    Akata held on for a while and then spoke out. ¡°If this is the meaning of your red then so be it. But¡­ to others that same red will have a completely different meaning. You may look at it like a curse but in reality you don¡¯t see it that way. You saw the beauty in this technique even after using it. You asked me what is the meaning of that red, well then I say that red makes that lotus a beautiful flower.

    Using this technique doesn¡¯t hurt anybody. In fact it does the opposite. It is a technique used to spread the beauty that you want to see. So¡­¡± Akata reached out and grabbed a red lotus off the vine. He kicked in the ground some making a hole and put the flower in it then covered it back up. ¡°... plant that beauty each time you use this technique. That is the meaning of that red, it is to spread your beauty around for all to see.¡±

    Peizhi Xiuying stood in shock at Akata¡¯s words and actions. How could she, someone who had utilized this technique, not realize the beauty in it. She wiped the tears off her face then clasped hands and bowed towards Akata. She was truly grateful for what Akata did just then.

    Akata instantly pulled her up from her bow, ¡°Whoa whoa no need for that I¡¯m happy to help you. I just had no idea that you were going through this. If anything like this ever happens to you then tell me. I will do my best to help.¡± He gave a warm smile.

    Peizhi Xiuying smiled back at Akata. ¡°Mn. Okay.¡± She said. She then plucked another flower and buried it right next to the one Akata planted. After that she sat cross legged and used the rest of the flowers to increase her cultivation.

    After about an hour she stood back up and looked refreshed. ¡°Alright! Sorry about that shall we get going? We still have a bunch of flowers to see in here and also you have to get me to the 3rd Grade as well.¡± She gave a chuckle and proceeded along.

    Akata nodded his head and followed after her. In his mind though he was thinking of one thing however. ¡®It¡¯s interesting how I¡¯ve met three people from two different clans who have techniques to absorb the blood of beasts in order to increase their cultivation.¡¯ His thoughts didn¡¯t surface on his face though and he caught up to Peizhi Xiuying.

    Throughout their walk they would sometimes encounter Blood Rabbits and other times find Fanged Monkeys. None of them however had a cultivation base higher than Grade 2. Each time they found an animal they would instantly kill it and then take its blood. Peizhi Xiuying would take the Blood Rabbits while Akata would take the Fanged Monkeys. This was because the Fanged Monkeys were too fast for Peizhi Xiuying so she couldn¡¯t catch them with her vine. She also refused to take something Akata went through the trouble of getting.

    In this fashion they proceeded along taking in the blood of the beasts. Akata¡¯s soul region contained a blood ball the size of a fist but it felt like a pool of blood. Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s lotuses were a deep crimson red to the point that the lotuses looked as if they were made of blood completely.

    ¡°We¡¯ll absorb all this accumulated blood once set up camp again. That way it¡¯ll be safer.¡± As Akata was speaking his voice trailed off. He had his nature sense spread out and therefore could see a detailed image of his surroundings at all times. At this point in time he saw a small plant in the area. His face filled with excitement as he lead the way over to it.

    Peizhi Xiuying was a little confused but she followed nonetheless. Once they were about three meters away from the plant her eyes went wide with astonishment. ¡°It¡¯s¡­ It¡¯s¡­ It¡¯s the Illusory Phoenix Lily!¡± It was indeed one of the flowers they were looking for.

    The lily was a bright orange that made it look like a small sun. The fragrance coming off of it filled the area with boundless life. Almost as if even if it died it would be reborn anew. Which was exactly what this flower could do. It was precisely a flower that could bring itself back to life even if it withered and died.

    The Illusory Phoenix Lily stood out amongst the other plant life that surrounded it. There were three of these flowers each emitting a strong life force. Peizhi Xiuying was thrilled at the sight of this.

    ¡°This is perfect! Now I can take one with me!¡± She flashed an incantation gesture and pointed toward the Illusory Phoenix Lily. ¡°Grand Life Vine!¡± A vine sprung up from the ground and circled around the flower like a snake. It didn¡¯t touch it however and only circled it. Peizhi Xiuying just paused there not doing anything else.

    After a long moment and her full concentration the flower emitted a droning sound and the tips of the petals changed red in color. A boundless life force sprang up from the flower immediately. At this time Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s eyes went wide and she flashed another incantation gesture. ¡° It¡¯s out of it¡¯s illusory phase! Absorb!¡± The vine that had been circling around the flower instantly sprang into action. Soon the vine had coiled around the flower and starting emitting a droning sound itself.

    The Illusory Phoenix Lily started to lose it¡¯s vibrant orange color. On the other hand the Grand Life Vine started to burst forth with a new life energy. After a while the Illusory Phoenix Lily was completely white and held no life within it.

    ¡°Not done yet!¡± Peizhi Xiuying flashed another incantation gesture and pointed to the flower again. ¡°Seize!¡± The flower trembled along with the Grand Life Vine. All of a sudden an orange mote of light flew out of the Illusory Phoenix Lily and into the Grand Life Vine. This time the flower wilted completely and the vine thrived with life.

    Akata looked on shocked with this scene. ¡°What did you just do? I thought we were just out here to look at flowers?¡± He became intrigued at what was happening. He didn¡¯t know anything about flowers like Peizhi Xiuying, he was only given a description of the flower to watch out for, and therefore was surprised to see how much life force was within this flower.

    And when he saw Peizhi Xiuying ¡®battling¡¯ the flower he was even moreso shocked. It was a really amazing experience and opened up his mind to new possibilities.

    ¡°This flower, the Illusory Phoenix Lily, basically has a limitless life. Well I guess it would be more accurate to say that it won¡¯t stay dead.¡± As she was talking she continued to flash multiple incantations in the air. ¡°That is because of the phoenix spark it has within it which let¡¯s it revive. I wanted this flower in order to incorporate that spark into my vine. I didn¡¯t want to totally take it just in case I destroyed it so I was happy to see that there were others.¡±

    She finished her incantation gesture and pointed to her vine which was still trembling. ¡°Integrate!¡± All of a sudden the vine stopped trembling and a life force as boundless as the Illusory Phoenix Lily emanated out of it. She let out a long deep breath and smiled. ¡°Done.¡±

    After resting for a while she flashed another incantation and pointed to the vine. ¡°Bloom.¡± The vine then sprouted ten flowers. They were all completely white but each flower had boundless life energy. Five of those flowers were lotuses while the other five were lilies. ¡°Perfect. It worked out perfectly. Now my vine is one step closer to the Flora Rank.¡±

    Akata looked on confused. ¡°The Flora Rank?¡±

 Chapter 29: Middle Ring

    Akata looked on confused. ¡°The Flora Rank? What is that? I¡¯ve never heard of that of that before.¡±

    Peizhi Xiuying looked at Akata confused also. ¡°You¡¯ve never heard of the Flora Rank before? It¡¯s the Rank that comes after the Seed Rank for plants. How could you have not heard of it?¡± She asked curious to his answer.

    ¡°Seed Rank for plants? What? Is it like a cultivation path for plants then?¡± Akata asked still confused as ever.

    ¡°Exactly. You¡¯re saying that you haven¡¯t heard of the Plant Realm then?¡± She asked.

    ¡°Plant Realm? No¡­ I never knew that existed. Since when was this?¡± Akata felt like he wasn¡¯t getting anywhere as more questions popped up then answers. ¡°And could you just tell me besides asking me more questions?¡±

    ¡°Ah! Sorry I was just surprised you never heard of it. Well first I should say that my clan specializes in cultivating plants. Since ancient times plants have had their own cultivation path along with mortal. However due to the passage of time that was lost. An ancient ancestor of my clan came up with a technique that allowed us to absorb the blood of our foes through plants to get stronger, this in turn let the plants get stronger as well. Which eventually led to us rediscovering the cultivation path of plants.

    Plants cultivate on the path of the Plant Realm. Of course now in modern times we don¡¯t know exactly what will happen to plants once they advance up in cultivation.Some of our ancient texts say that the plants once lived like mortals and beasts do, walking and talking like us. Well only time will tell if that was ever true.

    Anyways when plants start off cultivating they begin at the Seed Rank. After reaching the Great Circle of the Seed Rank they can then move on to the Flora Rank. Once a plant reaches the Flora Rank they become extraordinarily powerful. Capable of growing to the size of a small forest or even affecting all plant life in a small forest. In my clan if your plant that you cultivate reaches the Flora Rank you can become an Elder even if your own cultivation base isn¡¯t as powerful.¡±

    Peizhi Xiuying explained on and on about plants, cultivation, and her own clan. It was actually pretty common knowledge about plant cultivation where she came from so she didn¡¯t feel the need to hide anything from Akata.

    ¡°So does that mean that there is another Rank after Flora? If so what does that do? And what about your plant? What cultivation base does it have?¡± Akata was very intrigued about plants right now. He felt as if a big secret had been kept from him and now he could uncover it.

    Peizhi Xiuying giggled and continued on. ¡°There is another Rank after Flora. It¡¯s called the Verdure Rank. There¡¯s not much known about that Rank since nobody in the clan has reached that Rank. Only that ancient member of our clan ever has but he didn¡¯t leave any knowledge behind for us. And also since there is almost nothing known about that Rank we don¡¯t know if there is anything after it.¡± She said with a look of gloom appearing. But then it quickly cleared up.

    ¡°However I aim to change all of that! I¡¯m going to reach the Verdure Rank and then surpass it in order to pass on the knowledge tomy clan. Right now my vine is at the 3rd Grade of the Seed Rank. If I can find better opponents then it¡¯ll be at the Flora Rank in no time.¡± She said with a look and voice of determination.

    Akata finally understood everything about plants and nodded his head. ¡°Mn. That is a great motivator to become stronger! Well then that means that I can¡¯t just let you slack off then, can I? So we have to work extra harder.¡± He said with his voice booming.

    ¡°Right then shall we get going to the next flower then?¡± She said, already walking along the path her voice fading as she moved.

    ¡°Yes let¡¯s go right away. The more plants your vine absorbs the stronger it¡¯ll get right? Then let¡¯s get moving.¡± Akata said and then started to walk, following after her. But then he stopped and turned around. He bent over to pick up one of the red lotuses and after a bit of hesitation also an Illusory Phoenix Lily. He put the two flowers in his bag and ran to catch up to Peizhi Xiuying.

    It was a little past midday by now but the two were full of energy. They walked their way around the forest looking for more flowers and plants. But by the time the sun started setting there weren¡¯t any that could be found. After a bit of discussing they set up camp for the night.

    Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings.

    ¡°Well there aren¡¯t any beasts in the area so it should be safe to start absorbing this blood.¡± Akata suggested. Peizhi Xiuying nodded her head in agreement and sat down. She flashed an incantation gesture and brought out her vine which contained the ten crimson red lotuses.

    Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s vine had different tendrils that she could use. One of her tendrils contained the ten red lotuses and another one had five white lotuses and five white lilies. Of course she was going to spread the lilies to the other tendrils but it was going to take some time to do that.

    Akata sat down beside her and also flashed an incantation gesture. A blood colored ball the size of a fist flew out of his mouth and floated in front of him. ¡°Refine.¡± He spoke softly and the ball of blood began to shrink. Soon is was about half the size it had been before. Akata nodded his head in satisfaction. ¡°Good. Now I can absorb it properly.¡±

    When Peizhi Xiuying brought out the red lotuses she looked closely at them for a moment. After a while she plucked one off and planted it in the ground. ¡°Now I can start the refinement process.¡± She said full of contentment.

    She flashed an incantation gesture and the blood colored lotuses floated up into midair. They then started to spin around in a circle and before long began to inch closer to each other. Akata looked on amazed at her refinement process.

    Soon the lotuses began to superimpose upon each other until there was only one lotus left in the sky. The bloody light shining from it lit up the whole area and created a deep bloody aura. However even after all this the process wasn¡¯t done yet. The lotus began to swirl and soon petals on it began to fall off. Each time a petal fell that petal would be completely white in color. After a bit of time there was only one petal left in the sky. It held a deep crimson red that surpassed the previous lotuses.

    The petal slowly floated down to the palm of Peizhi Xiuying where it rested there. The boundless bloody aura that emanated out of it caused her face to pale. In fact she seemed to be hesitating to absorb it at the moment. She then looked down at the planted blood lotus and shook her head vigorously. With a face full of determination the petal flew into her forehead and she began to absorb it.

    Akata nodded his head and the ball of blood in front of him flew into his forehead as he too began to absorb blood. They both sat cross legged with their eyes closed focusing on the absorption process. Neither of them moved but their aura¡¯s slowly grew along with their cultivation base.

    In this fashion hours went by quickly for the two. The bloody aura coming from them caused all the beasts to not want to get near them so they were relatively safe. Akata still wanted to be safe so he diverted his attention. He had his nature sense spread out to monitor their surroundings just in case.

    Even though his attention was diverted amongst surveying his surroundings and absorbing the blood, Akata still managed to finish his absorption faster than Peizhi Xiuying. This was because he had more experience with absorbing blood and also he only absorbed one kind of beast¡¯s blood, the Fanged Monkey.

    As he opened his eyes and looked around he could feel that he had become more powerful. His eyesight was way better than it had been to the point he could see ten meters out in complete darkness. ¡°I never thought I would reach this level of strength in my entire life. But this is just the beginning.¡± He said eyes shining. ¡°I want to reach even better heights! Levels of strength I don¡¯t even know exist! I want to reach the pinnacle and then¡­ surpass that level!¡±

    ¡°Then can we reach it together hehe.¡± As Akata finished speaking Peizhi Xiuying opened her eyes and spoke out as well. ¡°It might get pretty lonely at the top by yourself so I¡¯ll get strong enough to meet you there. That way you¡¯ll have somebody with you.¡± Her voice soft she stood up. ¡°Right now I¡¯m at the peak 2nd Grade. If I can absorb just a bit more¡­ blood then I¡¯ll be able to break through to the 3rd Grade.¡±

    Akata nodded his head. ¡°Right. Well there really is no point in just staying here since we¡¯re neither tired and we can operate at night. How about we look for another plant and get you to Grade 3 on the way then?¡± Akata suggested in a playful manner.

    ¡°I would like that.¡± Peizhi Xiuying said with a laugh. Then her face turned serious and she said. ¡°But Akata¡­ How about we head in deeper. I feel like there isn¡¯t another flower that I¡¯m looking for in the outer perimeter. I know it¡¯ll be dangerous but I can handle myself. You don¡¯t have to worry about me that much. Besides I used to protect you so I can definitely hold my own.¡± She stated.

    Akata¡¯s face was calm and serious. He didn¡¯t speak for a while before he sighed and said, ¡°You¡¯re your own person and I have no control over you. If you feel that you can head in deeper then I¡¯ll just go with you.¡± He said, his voice booming with determination.

    ¡°Mn.¡± She spoke and hugged Akata. ¡°Then let¡¯s get going. Oh. I should be more serious haha. Alright I¡¯m ready.¡± Her attitude did a complete 180 in an instant. They both started walking, heading deeper into Misty Forest.

    The deeper you went into Misty Forest the more dangerous it became. Misty Forest was separated into four sections. The outer ring, the middle ring, the inner ring, and the center circle. Beasts on the outer ring mostly ranged from the 1st to the 2nd Grade while in the middle ring they could be as strong as the 5th Grade. Past the middle ring the beasts were even stronger. Till this day nobody in modern times has made it into the inner ring and came back out.

    You could tell when you were about to enter into the next section of the forest because at each section there was a barrier of mist. Akata and Peizhi Xiuying approached the mist barrier in stood in front of it. They took a few deep breaths and then entered.

    Even as they walked through the mist barrier they could still see each other clearly. They stuck close to each other and were on high alert. Cries from beasts could be heard coming from the other side of the mist as they walked along. A bead of sweat could even be seen coming from Akata¡¯s forehead as he walked in the lead.

    After a few minutes of time passed they were out of the mist. They could see the forest clearly in front of them now. It looked almost exactly the same as the outer ring except for a few more plants here and there. Akata had his nature sense spread out to the max as he surveyed the land around them. Only until he confirmed they were safe did he let out a long breath.

    ¡°There doesn¡¯t seem to be any beasts in our area. We¡¯re lucky to have come this way.¡± Akata said in his calmest voice possible right now.

    ¡°So what should we do now then?¡± Peizhi Xiuying asked. Her sense of the surroundings weren¡¯t nearly as great as Akata so she didn¡¯t know if they would wait some, move to a different location, or if they can begin searching.

    ¡°We can actually start looking for the flower right now if you feel up to it. We should start heading that direction. There are some beasts on the way but they are merely Grade 2.¡± Akata said full of confidence.

    ¡°Alright then. Let¡¯s get going shall we.¡± Peizhi Xiuying giggled and began to walk alongside Akata.

 Chapter 30: Ready To Go?

    Akata and Peizhi Xiuying proceeded along cautiously through the middle ring. They then stopped and looked in front of them. Up ahead there were about three Grade 2 beasts eating on another kind of beast.

    The three beasts had bushy blue fur. Their claws were white along with their saber teeth. They had tails that could spread out like a parachute and cover them like a cape, but most of the time they were as then as a snake.

    ¡°Lunar Bears.¡± Peizhi Xiuying said with a slightly frightened look. ¡°Their defense is top notch and they tend to hunt in packs. Should we go around them?¡± She asked turning to face Akata.

    Akata on the other hand could feel his blood pumping. This was a beast that he hasn¡¯t faced before and he wanted to fight it. Of course he wanted it¡¯s blood to get some of its secrets but that was secondary to him right now.

    ¡°You can stay back if you want. But I want to battle them. Only by constantly fighting and training myself can I become stronger.¡± He said as he took a step forward. As he did a red glow flashed across his eyes.

    Peizhi Xiuying shook her head and let out a long breath. She too walked in the direction of the Lunar Bears. ¡®If he is going to face them I can¡¯t just watch idly on the side.¡¯ After these thoughts her face changed into one of determination.

    Akata started to pick up speed as he approached the Lunar Bears. His nature energy quickly changed from calm into a raging river. The shocking change made the Lunar Bears look up in astonishment. They quickly identified Akata and Peizhi Xiuying heading their way.

    All three gave a loud roar and charged toward Akata who was in front of Peizhi Xiuying. The three bears were at least twice the height of Akata. To any onlooker it would seem that this battle would be one sided.

    Akata gave a slight smile and sent out the power of his cultivation base which was at the 3rd Grade. The pressure immediately caused the three bears to slow down in their tracks and one of them even began to retreat.

    ¡°He¡¯s at the 3rd Grade already?¡± Peizhi Xiuying was surprised to see that Akata was at the 3rd Grade. ¡°But he was just at the 2nd Grade before we entered the forest. How is he advancing so fast?¡±

    Peizhi Xiuying shook her head no longer wondering about Akata¡¯s rise in power and immediately yelling out. ¡°I¡¯ll get the one that is retreating. You can focus on those two right there.¡± She flashed an incantation gesture and her vine appeared. This time displaying two tendrils. The vine quickly grew to be longer than ten meters and flew out to the retreating Lunar Bear.

    The vine was just too fast for the bear as it lashed on to it and pulled it back toward Peizhi Xiuying. ¡°Sprout.¡± She willed the vine to sprout buds of white flowers. Some of them were lotus buds and others were lily buds. The appearance of the buds caused the vine to grow more powerful as it pulled the Lunar Bear in faster.

    Akata could see that Peizhi Xiuying could handle the bear and quickly put his attention on the two in front of him. Both bears quickly spread out their tails. The tails increased in length and width to become a blanket that covered over them.

    ¡°Putting up some shields eh? No matter I¡¯ll break it soon.¡± He decreased his cultivation to the 2nd Grade to make this a better fight. Then Akata¡¯s body glowed with a red light as he pulled his fist back and then threw it out to the nearest Lunar Bear. The bear was sent flying back and into a tree where it let out a squeal.

    The bear then uncovered itself to reveal a bloody gash it had. However that was all there was, nothing else. It¡¯s eyes became bloodshot as it seemed to lose control of itself. It¡¯s claws grew longer along with it¡¯s saber teeth then it charged toward Akata.

    ¡°Humph. That defense is tough. Even with me using half my strength I didn¡¯t manage to kill it.¡± Akata looked on closely. He was a fighting genius so he would learn from each exchange in a fight and improve upon them.

    ¡°Shadowfeet.¡± As the charging bear was upon him Akata activated his Shadowfeet skill and zoomed past the wild Lunar Bear. His lower body merged into the shadows of the night and as his speed increased explosively. In the night his Shadowfeet skill could go at its fastest speed when being unleashed.

    He then headed toward the other bear not bothering to look back. ¡®No need in fighting something that has lost its mind.¡¯ The charging bear was still charging to the previous spot Akata had been in when its head was sent flying off. It happened so fast that even after its head was chopped off, its body was still running. Blood didn¡¯t even have time to squirt out of its neck as its body toppled to the ground, lifeless.This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

    As Akata approached the second bear, he was a bit disappointed, he wanted this fight to last a bit longer so that he could learn more from it. As he moved closer he even stopped rotating his red rune. ¡®I guess this is as good as time as any to see how far I can go without using any runes.¡¯ He thought to himself.

    He got to the second bear quickly and punched out. When his punch landed on the blanket like tail it felt like he was hitting metal. ¡®So tough!¡¯ He thought as his face filled with astonishment.

    He unleashed punch after punch but none of it was working against the shield of the Lunar Bear. Eventually the Lunar Bear noticed that Akata couldn¡¯t hurt it. It then let out a roar and tried to swipe at Akata. It¡¯s palm was the size of Akata¡¯s head but with Akata¡¯s speed and agility it couldn¡¯t touch him.

    The bear and Akata fought back and forth but neither of them could do anything to each other. It was a complete stalemate. ¡®It¡¯s too bad I don¡¯t know any divine abilities that I could test right now. It would really help to gauge my strength.¡¯ Akata used his Shadowfeet to zip around the Lunar Bear to get behind it where he threw another punch.

    Meanwhile¡­

    Peizhi Xiuying held the Lunar Bear in her vine. The Lunar Bear tried to fight back but it didn¡¯t work. The vine was just too tough to break free from.

    ¡°Tsk. After that last absorption my vine has reached the mid 3rd Rank. A trifling 2nd Rank can¡¯t possibly think about breaking free from it. As I think about it, it won¡¯t be a bad idea to try out some new blood for once.¡± As she said this she flashed an incantation gesture and pointed to the vine. ¡°Bloom.¡±

    The white buds on the vine tendrils bloomed into lotuses and lilies. The vine burst forth with boundless life energy that came from the lilies. ¡°The Illusory Phoenix Lily gives my vine the ability to resurrect itself. But my original flower, the Blood Lotus, takes the blood of things to nourish and strengthen itself. Drain.¡±

    The Lunar Bear let out a roar as it¡¯s blue fur started to become white. It was at this moment that a blue light began to emanate off of its claws and fangs. Its claws and fangs became heavier and when it slashed against the vine it made it tear apart.

    Peizhi Xiuying was shocked by this. ¡®What kind of ability is that? These vines should be indestructible to anything below the 3rd Rank. Yet it was able to tear them apart?¡¯ Even as she was speaking the vine began to repair itself until it was fully formed again.

    She gave a cold snort and flashed another incantation gesture. ¡°Grand Life Vine.¡± The vine quickly grew out to twenty meters long and two more tendrils sprung out of the ground. These tendrils however only had white lotuses. The four tendrils waved in the air around Peizhi Xiuying emitting a boundless life force.

    She pointed toward the Lunar Bear and the vines zoomed forth in that direction. Soil, rock, and other plants were uprooted from the ground as the vines flashed in that direction. One vine wrapped around Peizhi Xiuying herself and lifted her up in the air.

    Up in the air she flashed another incantation gesture and pointed downward toward the bear. ¡°Pollinate!¡± The few flowers that had drained some of the life out of the bear before began to shake. Soon red dust could be seen coming out of them as it spread across the area around the bear. In the red dust however could be seen specks of black on it.

    ¡°This is your blood that I took before. I¡¯m giving it back to you. However be careful when you take it cause my vine might have poisoned it!¡± Her eyes were cold as the poisoned pollen spread out over the bear.

    The bear trembled as the pollen touched its fur. The pollen was quickly absorbed by the bear and its fur was turning black. It let out another roar and swiped its claws again. The three other tendrils were wrapping around it and lashing out. Bloody gashes could be seen on the bear and it looked to be weakening some.

    Peizhi Xiuying gave one more cold snort and pointed at the bear again. ¡°Pierce.¡± She said softly. The vine straightened out as if they had become spears as they rushed in towards the bear. They effortlessly penetrated through the Lunar Bear. ¡°Drain.¡± She spoke once more.

    This time the bear could do nothing as its fur was turning white at an astonishing speed. After a few breaths of time the white flowers on her vine were completely red in color and the Lunar Bear was completely white.

    With a wave of her hand the vines quickly dispersed and the bear toppled to the ground lifeless. Peizhi Xiuying gave a big sigh and picked up one of her red flowers. It was one of her lilies and she planted it into the ground.

    Akata was focused on the bear in front of him as he punch out. The bear let out a roar and moved its tail behind it to block the punch. Akata¡¯s fist still couldn¡¯t do anything.

    ¡°Ugh! I should be more powerful than this. Is this really all I can do when I don¡¯t use my runes? Come on I can manage to defeat this beast without using my runes, there has to be a way.¡± He looked over to see that Peizhi Xiuying had pierced the bear with her vines and killed it. It was then that he got an idea.

    Akata¡¯s eyes became cold as he undid his hand as a fist. His hand was all the way stretched out with his fingers pointed in the bears direction. ¡°I¡¯ll just stab it and try to penetrate its body!¡± He struck out swiftly aimed at the bears shield like tail.

    The impact from the collision caused the tail to bleed some. Although Akata managed to hurt it, he wasn¡¯t satisfied in the least. ¡°It couldn¡¯t even reach the body of the bear. Only a bit of blood was spilled from it.¡±

    The Lunar Bear however roared when it was injured by Akata. A blue light glowed from its claws and fangs as it swung out at Akata. Immediately Akata felt himself get heavier.

    ¡°What ability is this?! I feel like my movements are being restricted almost like¡­¡± Akata¡¯s eyes went wide with astonishment at his next thought. ¡°... almost like it¡¯s controlling gravity! This is too amazing of an ability. I have to get my hands on it.¡±

    His eyes showed with greed as he no longer cared for the battle experience. He rotated his red rune and struck out viciously at the incoming claw. The pressure from his red rune instantly caused the gravity weighing down on him to be pushed aside. His strike made contact with the claw and broke it apart with ease. But it still continued on to the body of the Lunar Bear where it landed and sent it flying.

    The bear landed and skid across the ground where it didn¡¯t move again. Akata waved his hand causing the blood of the beast to fly over to him. Then he turned and waved his hand again toward the other Lunar Bear he had killed causing the blood of that beast to fly over. The blood of the two beasts gathered together to form a ball that shrunk and flew into Akata¡¯s soul region.

    He clapped his hands together as if clearing dust from them. ¡°Ready to go?¡± He said.

 Chapter 31: Cold Hearted Flower

    ¡°Ready to go?¡± Akata said.

    Peizhi Xiuying looked at him with admiration and fear. She noticed how he instantly slaughtered the Lunar Bear and collected the blood as soon as he saw the innate ability of it. That kind of strength was abnormal for a Grade 3 cultivator. It may even be on the level of Grade 5.

    ¡°Yeah¡­ I¡¯m ready to go.¡± She managed to squeeze out. Akata looked at her confused and then went along walking.

    ¡®She¡¯s acting weird. I wonder what¡¯s wrong with her. Maybe she¡¯s tired, I haven¡¯t seen her fight like that in a while so she could just be out of energy.¡¯ He thought to himself. ¡®We should probably set up camp then and rest.¡¯

    ¡°We should set camp up and rest our minds and body. It¡¯s important to stay in top shape when in here.¡± Akata spoke out.

    ¡°Yea¡­ Yeah! You¡¯re right we should probably rest our minds and body. Ahaha.¡± Peizhi Xiuying rubbed the back of her head and let out a laugh. The laugh sounded forced though.

    Akata sighed inside and shook his head. After an hour of walking they set up camp. Akata avoided anymore skirmishes with the beasts as he didn¡¯t want it to affect Peizhi Xiuying. After setting up camp they pulled out the blood they collected and began to refine and absorb it.

    Akata carefully absorbed his blood and thoroughly looked through its secrets. He saw the memories of the two bears and what innate abilities they had. ¡®It¡¯s interesting how beasts are born with innate abilities, whereas mortals have to obtain them. I guess this is just the difference between beasts and mortal.¡¯

    As he was thinking this he came to another thought. ¡®Then what is the difference between plants and mortals? Could plants have something they are special at?¡¯ After a bit of thinking he went back to concentrating on the blood.

    The blood contained many secrets in it. The bears that they faced were about thirty years old, which to the bears was still young. All three of them were actually siblings. The bears were capable of reaching the 8th Grade of the Docile Rank which is pretty strong for a beast. They hunted in packs to make living in the forest much easier. Akata looked through all the memories and knowledge of the bears.

    ¡®What is this?¡¯ He stumbled upon a memory of the bear that he had beheaded and found something interesting. ¡®That¡¯s the Five Elements Rose! And it¡¯s close by too! I can¡¯t start searching until I finish absorbing this blood so let¡¯s finish this first.¡¯

    He quickly went through all the memories and moved on the other secrets of the blood. There he found the innate ability of the Lunar Bear. ¡®This ability is called Lunar Force. What? I can¡¯t train in this ability? Ugh¡­ all that work for nothing. At least I¡¯ll get to add another bloodline on top of mine.¡¯ He mentally shook his head and began absorbing the rest of the blood.

    It took fairly quickly for Akata to absorb the blood since it only came from two beasts. Once he finished he jumped up and a smile ran across his face. Peizhi Xiuying had been finished absorbing the blood since she couldn¡¯t look through any of its secrets or memories. She watched as Akata jumped up and headed her way.

    ¡°Peizhi Xiuying I¡¯ve found the Five Elements Rose.¡± He said with a wide grin on his face. He wanted to spread the good news to her.

    Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s mouth gaped open and she jumped up too. ¡°You did what?! How?!¡± She asked very curious as to his answer.

    ¡°Haha it was in the memories of that bear I killed. From the looks of it the rose should contain the elements of metal, water, yin, yang, and air. Oh and there¡¯s more than one too. Hehe.¡± Akata was truly happy with his discovery. The flowers they were searching for were considered rare yet he was able to find two easily.

    ¡°Yin and yang elements?! Where at? Is it close by then?¡± Peizhi Xiuying asked, no longer able to contain her excitement. If she could get her hands on this flower then her vine would experience a major change.

    ¡°It is close by, in fact it shouldn¡¯t take us more than an hour to get there even if we just walked.¡± Of course Akata was just as excited as Peizhi Xiuying was. He wanted to learn more about plants now that he discovered that they could cultivate too.

    Together they rushed off in the direction that Akata had seen the flower. Their spirits were enlivened as they came closer to the destination.

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    Soon they could see a patch of flowers in the distance. Each flower had five different colors on them. In this grove of flowers the elements in the area were in turmoil. Wind swayed, water fell from nowhere, fire could be seen burning some distant plants, earth cracked in some places, and lightning crackled in the air.

    When they arrived at the grove tens of different colored flowers could be seen. Peizhi Xiuying immediately laid her eyes on one flower however.

    ¡°Elements containing metal, water, air, yin, and yang. I can¡¯t believe it. This specific type of flower is even rarer than the others.¡± Her eyes were shining and her mouth was gaped open. She really couldn¡¯t believe that she was laying her eyes on this flower in front of her. Originally when she set out to find this flower she didn¡¯t even imagine finding one with yin and yang properties, especially together.

    Separately yin and yang could be seen as powerful elements to control. But together they were on a whole other class of their own. It was truly good fortune to come across this.

    Peizhi Xiuying flashed an incantation gesture sending out her Grand Life Vine to circle around the rose. ¡°Absorb!¡± The vine coiled around the rose and made a droning sound. ¡°This Five Elements Rose has the colors of gold, blue, green, black, and white signifying that it has metal, water, air, yin, and yang as its elements respectively.¡± As she was speaking the color from the Five Elements Rose began to fade away into the vine.

    As the colors faded away winds would stir, water would crash, metal would form, and light and darkness would descend. It was as if the rose was struggling to keep its color. Peizhi Xiuying gave a cold snort. ¡°Humph. Pipe down!¡± She flashed another incantation gesture and pointed to the rose which trembled and lost even more of its color.

    Soon the rose was completely white. It looked completely lifeless as it stood there. The Grand Life Vine flashed with different colors momentarily but then dimmed down. All was still but Peizhi Xiuying knew it wasn¡¯t over.

    She flashed another incantation gesture and pointed to the completely white rose once more. ¡°Seize!¡± She yelled. The rose trembled and swayed along with the vine which was still coiled around it. Instantly a multicolored mote of light flew out of the rose and was absorbed by the vine.

    The vine¡¯s aura immediately exploded outward causing the wild elements in the area to be dispersed momentarily. The vine then turned into water, then metal, and wind. After that the vine turned completely black and then white. It had completely absorbed the five elements of the rose.

    The Five Elements Rose then trembled greatly and finally turned into dust which floated into the air. Peizhi Xiuying flashed another incantation gesture and pointed at her vine. ¡°Integrate.¡± She said softly. The vine stopped trembling. ¡°Bloom.¡± Instantly the vine sprouted white buds on its tendrils. When the buds bloomed there were three different flowers, a lotus, a lily, and a rose.

    With a look of satisfaction she sat down to recover her energy. Even as she closed her eyes and meditated to recover her energy she had a smile on her face.

    Akata stood to the side watching all this happen, a look of amazement on his face. He quietly made the decision to study on plants and flowers once he got back to the sect. He looked out to the patch of Five Elements Roses and caught sight of one particular flower.

    The flower had five colors like the rest of them. Red, black, azure, gold, and violet. It was normal save for one color. ¡®Violet?¡¯ Akata thought to himself as he strode forth toward the rose. Peizhi Xiuying was in her own little world so she didn¡¯t notice Akata.

    ¡®Violet is the color for the chaos element. An element that holds many more secrets and is more profound than even yin and yang. I don¡¯t even see any other roses with a violet color. Is this the only one?¡¯ He thought as he made his way closer to the rose.

    He bent over to inspect the rose closer. As he inspected it he noticed something strange about it. ¡®None of the elements are affecting the area. This would be a great flower to study when I get back.¡¯ He thought to himself. He plucked the rose and put it in his bag.

    Even though he held many things in his bag, it was special. The bag he carried could alter space and time which brought him many benefits. It was given to him by Third Elder as a gift. The bag could hold many things inside and also slow down time to a great degree. In fact the flower would survive longer in his bag than it would planted in the ground without any interference.

    ¡®That should do it.¡¯ He said to himself with satisfaction.

    All of a sudden his face changed and he sent his fist out behind him. As soon as he did a dagger collided with it and fell with a ¡®clank¡¯.

    Akata didn¡¯t waste time as he rushed over to stand by Peizhi Xiuying, who had immediately opened her eyes to see what was going on. ¡°What¡¯s happening?!¡± She asked. She had just been in the middle of meditation and when she opened her eyes Akata was right beside her.

    ¡°We¡¯re being ambushed by somebody. Though I actually think I¡¯m the one they¡¯re after.¡± He said with his nature sense spreading out. ¡°I think that because even though you were just in the middle of meditation and unaware of your surroundings they didn¡¯t attack you first. So whoever it is must be after me.¡± Akata¡¯s eyes were darting around the area looking for any signs of moevemt.

    ¡°I would like to tell you to get away and leave me so that you¡¯ll be safe but we¡¯re in the middle ring and there are beasts here that are probably stronger than the people ambushing me. My fault but you¡¯re going to have to stay by my side.¡± Akata said with helplessness.

    ¡°Mn. Don¡¯t worry about it. I¡¯ll help you deal with whoever dared to attack you. They¡¯ll learn not to mess with my Akata.¡± As she spoke her voice grew colder and colder to the point where Akata almost didn¡¯t recognize it.

    Peizhi Xiuying flashed an incantation gesture, ¡°Grand Life Vine!¡± and waved her hand out in front of her. The vines lashed out in front of her and the trees that had just been there were now toppled to the ground. She then waved her hand around her as the forest then fell to the ground clearing the view.

    The moonlight was able to shine down on them now and illuminate the area. All was quiet and the sounds of beasts couldn¡¯t even be heard.

    ¡°Whoever it is that is ambushing us has to at least be at the 3rd Grade since they made it into the middle ring. There¡¯s probably more than one too so be careful.¡± Akata said to Peizhi Xiuying.

    However she didn¡¯t respond back and instead flashed another incantation gesture. Her Grand Life Vine grew to twenty meters and four more tendrils sprouted from the ground. She now had five tendrils of vines waving in the air. ¡°Bud.¡± Instantly many white buds grew from the vine causing a boundless life force to spring up.

    Her eyes darted across the area, killing intent seen within, until they stopped in a particular direction. She pointed her hand in that direction and two of her vines flew over there at a blazingly fast speed.

    Akata noticed something over there too a bit earlier than Peizhi Xiuying did but he didn¡¯t react in before her. He saw her send her vine in that direction and was astonished. ¡®How could she sense over there at about the same time as me? And what is up with her mood? Is this the same Peizhi Xiuying from before?¡¯ He thought to himself.

    But as he thought he sensed something else inching closer to them from behind. He turned around and was about to strike out when he heard a blood curdling scream.

    ¡°AAARGH!¡±

 Chapter 32: Im So Sorry

    ¡°AAARGH!¡±

    The blood curdling scream sounded throughout the forest and into Akata¡¯s ears. The scream didn¡¯t come from Peizhi Xiuying but instead in the direction he was about to punch in. His eyes went wide as he noticed a vine going through the forest.

    As the vine was being pulled in blood could be seen dripping off of it and onto the ground. At the end of the vine a limp body could be seen. The vine had completely impaled the person. It probably happened so fast the person didn¡¯t even realize it happened until they felt it.

    ¡°Drain.¡± Peizhi Xiuying said in a cold voice. Akata felt a chill run down his spine when he heard it. He froze in place not daring to move an inch from where he was standing. He could see the white flowers on the vine becoming red. He could see the body on the vine losing its color and becoming white. Then it turned into dust and drifted with the wind, never to be seen again.

    Akata¡¯s body went cold and he managed to turn his head slightly to catch a glimpse of Peizhi Xiuying flashing an incantation gesture. The aura around her was cold and the vine reacted to that coldness by becoming more ruthless and savage.

    ¡°Peizhi¡­ Xiuying.¡± Akata managed to squeeze out. She turned her head to face him. When he saw her he didn¡¯t know what to think. Her eyes were as cold as ice yet she held a smile as warm as the sun¡¯s rays.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry Akata I¡¯ll definitely protect you no matter what. If anyone dares to hurt you I¡¯ll beat them to a pulp. However if anyone dares to try and kill you¡­¡± She paused her sentence and then began again. ¡°... I won¡¯t show any mercy.¡± Her last few words grew cold again as she pointed in another direction. ¡°Five Elements: Metal.¡±

    The Grand Life Vine hardened and turned golden as it flew in the direction of her finger. Immediately after that another scream could be heard following that. ¡°Drain.¡± She said coldly afterwards.

    Akata wasn¡¯t against killing the people, in fact he had planned to do the same thing. If someone wanted him dead then he would kill them first. But what he was surprised about was the fact that Peizhi Xiuying was killing these people in order to protect him.

    He stood in shock watching Peizhi Xiuying kill one person after another just to protect him. Eventually his mind calmed down and he regained his composure.

    When he did he heard a voice call out in the distance. ¡°You¡¯re Akata right? While I have nothing against you, my superiors do. It¡¯s unfortunate that you had to piss them off in some way, now I have to kill you. It seems that that girl is doing her best to protect you however. Tsk tsk. Shame that she is killing my subordinates so she has to go as well.¡± When the voice ended a sharp piercing sound could be heard approaching.

    Akata¡¯s eyes went wide and he unconsciously began to run towards Peizhi Xiuying. He didn¡¯t know why but he was desperate to get to her in time. But it was too late. A golden blade pierced right through her back and out he chest as it landed in the ground in front of her.

    Time seemed to slow down for Akata as he watched Peizhi Xiuying look at the blade, touch her wound, and fall to the ground with a ¡®thump¡¯ before he was at her side. He held onto her tightly as the blood from her wound turned her white furs red.

    She looked at him deeply, her eyes no longer cold and merciless. She gave a sweet smile towards him. ¡°I¡¯m sorry I couldn¡¯t protect you longer, Akata.¡± She coughed up a mouthful of blood. ¡°This is goodbye. I¡¯m happy I got to meet you in this life.¡± Blood oozed out of the corners of her mouth as she spoke.

    ¡°Peizhi Xiuying! What are you saying?! Stay with me! Stay with me!¡± Tears streaming down his face he cried out. ¡°Don¡¯t you dare die on me! I¡¯ll heal you just tell me how! You said you were going to protect me! How can you do that if you are gone?! I promised to not let anything happen to you, so how am I supposed to keep that?!¡±

    Even as he spoke her body grew cold, no longer moving. She died with a smile on her face and her furs crimson red. Akata cried out, screaming, as the tears washed away the blood on her face. It made her pale skin sparkle in the moonlight.

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    ¡°Now now stop with all that crying, you¡¯re about to be with her soon.¡± A black robed figure appeared in front of Akata about five meters away. ¡°Since you¡¯re that bent on protecting her then you can both protect each other in the next life.¡± The man¡¯s voice boomed out as he dashed towards Akata flashing an incantation gesture. ¡°Skyline Blade.¡±

    Akata couldn¡¯t hear a word the man was saying though as his mind was lost. Emotions swelled up inside him, anger, depression, melancholy, love, compassion. All of it surfaced in his mind as he held onto Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s body. When he felt the man approaching her body he completely lost control of himself.

    ¡°STAY. AWAY. FROM. HER!¡± He spoke one word at a time. Each word he said caused his energy to rise and his killing intent to rise to unknown levels. His pupils became slits and his eyes glowed with crimson and gold.

    He picked his head up to look at the approaching man in the eyes. The black robed man felt his entire body go numb from that look. Akata¡¯s eyes were so cold it froze his body mid stride. Sweat formed on his forehead and soon his body was soaked in it. He couldn¡¯t believe that a single look from this person could make him so terrified.

    ¡°Just¡­ just what kind of person did they send me after? He¡¯s clearly only at the 3rd Grade but he¡¯s making me, someone at the 4th Grade, sweat in fear?¡± At the thought of this the black robed man shook his head. ¡°Preposterous! No trifling 3rd Grade Mortal Rank cultivator is going to get the best of me. Prepare yourself boy. I¡¯ll make this quick and easy for you.¡±

    The black robed man then began to charge back in towards Akata. Akata on the other hand yelled out, ¡°I SAID STAY AWAY FROM HER!¡± His yell sent out a blast of energy that pushed back the black robed man. The area five meters around Akata became a crater as only he and Peizhi Xiuying could be seen within.

    He slowly and softly put her down and coldly looked at the black robed man. The black robed man felt a chill and then flashed an incantation gesture. ¡°Skyline Blade!¡± He pointed at Akata and a golden blade was sent flying in his direction.

    Akata was glowing with red and golden light. As the blade approached, Akata reached his hand out and waved it in the air. The movement of his hand generated a wind that pushed the blade aside sending it in another direction. As the blade went in a different direction it cut through multiple trees until it hit a rock and disintegrated it.

    Before the man could react to his attack being pushed back by wind created from a Grade 3 cultivator, Akata was standing in front of him with a cold look in his eyes. The man tried to jump back but Akata was too fast and grabbed him by the throat.

    Akata looked coldly into his eyes and spoke his words clearly. ¡°You killed Peizhi Xiuying without any hesitation right? Well¡­ I¡¯m hesitating whether or not I should kill you.¡± As he spoke his eyes flashed with red and gold along with his body.

    The black robed man tried to struggle but couldn¡¯t free himself no matter what he tried. ¡®I can¡¯t get free from the grasp of a Grade 3 cultivator? Just what kind of person is this?¡¯ He was beyond scared now as he faced Akata.

    Akata looked at the man trying to struggle. ¡°No need for you to struggle. I wasn¡¯t hesitating on the fact on whether I should kill you or not, but whether I should kill you now or later.¡± Akata paused for a moment and then continued on. ¡°I¡¯ve decided it should be later.¡± With that his hand that was holding the throat of the man glowed with a bright red and gold.

    The black robed man let out a blood curdling scream. ¡°AAHHH!¡± He felt as if a rock was forming inside of his arm, that it wanted to burst out. And it did. His arm stretched from the inside and soon his arm blasted apart with pieces of flesh flying around. In place of his arm could be seen an illusory rock the size of a fist.

    Akata held a cold gaze in his eyes as he looked on at the black robed man screaming in agony and intense pain. He didn¡¯t bat an eye or look away but instead studied his facial expressions closely. ¡°Eh? What¡¯s wrong? I went through more pain than this before.¡± His voice was cold and merciless as his hand glowed once more with a golden light.

    The black robed man¡¯s left leg exploded soon after to be replaced by an illusory rock. Another scream was bellowed out by the black robed man. The scream echoed throughout the forest making the other cultivators retreat at top speed.

    ¡°Just what is going on?!¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s Jimin Fui screaming like that! Who could make him do that?!¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s at the 4th Grade of the Mortal Rank! We were only sent after a trifling 3rd Grade, were¡­ were we set up or something?!¡±

    Their cries rang out in the forest and into Akata¡¯s ears. Suddenly a cold smile could be seen forming on his face. ¡°So that¡¯s where you all are.¡± His smile was sinister and malicious. It made Jimin Fui¡¯s body freeze over and forget the pain that he was feeling.

    Akata threw Jimin Fui¡¯s body down into the ground where he coughed up multiple mouthfuls of blood. His fist was golden and red as he pulled his arm back. An illusory rock could be seen forming in front of his fist. He aimed his punch in a certain direction and threw it out. The illusory rock was thrown forward and became bigger as it flew across the forest.

    After a few breaths worth of time a scream could be heard as the cultivators body was crushed into nothingness. Akata didn¡¯t stop there but threw out a second punch, then a third, and a fourth. In a few breaths of time he threw out multiple punches and each one caused a scream to sound out.

    Akata seemed to be lost in a trance as he sent his punches out over and over again. The screams he heard influenced him and made him go crazy. Eyes bloodshot he continued to punch out. Although it quickly drained him of his energy he didn¡¯t care or seem to notice, he just kept on doing it. Eventually though a single teardrop could be seen falling off of his face.

    ¡®This is all I can do for you Peizhi Xiuying. Once this is over I hope that it would ease your suffering.¡¯ After about thirty breaths of time Akata stopped punching out and looked blankly at the forest ahead of him. All was silent and he closed his eyes.

    His eyes snapped open again as cold as ever as he turned his attention back to Jimin Fui. He laughed out coldly and punched out, sending a blast toward the ground and creating a crater. Jimin Fui was long gone only his bloodstains remained.

    ¡°He was at the 4th Grade of the Mortal Rank of course he had a way of escaping once I let him go. Tsk. Next time I meet him he''ll definitely die a horrific death.¡± Akata surveyed the land one more and then made his way to Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s body.

    He knelt down and stayed that way for a bit of time before picking her up and walking toward the sect. On the way he could be heard murmuring the same words repeatedly. ¡°I''m so sorry.¡±

 Chapter 33: Take Care Of Her

    Akata held up Peizhi Xiuying''s body as he made his way out of the middle ring of Misty Forest. He held her in his arms like a groom would carry his bride. Her originally white furs we now dyed red by her blood. Under the moonlight she looked as if she was a blood goddess.

    Akata was wreathed in a red and golden light of aura which caused the pressure around him to weigh down on everything by a multitude. His red and gold runes were rotating voraciously as he walked towards the sect. He wasn¡¯t planning on attacking anything, only using the pressure from his runes to clear a path. A path that wouldn¡¯t cause him to wander around and put Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s body in danger.

    He walked forward with nothing impeding his path as he made his way to the sect. His face was blank as he carried her in his arms. He held no sign of emotion, as if he was dead inside.

    Soon he made his way to the mists of the middle ring. He looked deeply at the mists as he approached them. Even as he looked deeply at the mists he didn¡¯t slow down in the least. He steadily traversed straight through the mist. The cries of beasts could be heard in the mists as he walked along, however the cries were far away from Akata.

    He didn¡¯t slow his pace down as he traveled through the forest. Throughout the whole trip he didn¡¯t encounter any beasts or even other cultivators. Whenever something or someone came close to the pressure he was exerting they would stay away, not daring to find out what it was that was emitting that pressure.

    This made the trip a lot easier for Akata. It made the trip back to the sect last for about a day. Even then, Akata¡¯s face remained blank the whole time. As he came close to the edge of the outer ring towards the sect, Akata decreased the pressure being exerted by him to almost nothing. There was so little pressure that he didn¡¯t affect his surroundings at all. It was as if he was a ghost wandering through the forest.

    On his way to the sect, Akata had ample time to think of what had happened and what he was doing. His face was blank but his thoughts were calm and collected. It was actually the calmest he had ever been in his life.

    ¡®If I was stronger I could have protected her life better, in fact she could be living and walking beside me right now. However, I didn¡¯t have that strength and therefore she died trying to protect me even though I didn¡¯t need it. I¡¯m not going to blame her death on my failure to be strong¡­ in the future I¡¯ll just have to be strong enough so nobody else will die around me.

    As I progress in life and get stronger, I¡¯ll be facing stronger opponents. I can¡¯t hesitate when fighting someone, my battles will be over life and death. Not mentioning my life, but the lives of the people that I care about. I can¡¯t hold back any longer when fighting. I need to take training seriously for now on and progress faster.

    Peizhi Xiuying¡­ I promise that I¡¯ll reach the pinnacle of strength for the two of us. My first step on that path is¡­ destroying that cultivator who killed you. I don¡¯t care that you killed his people, but because he killed you, he has to die. Right or wrong, good or bad, true or false, it doesn¡¯t matter as long as you¡¯re strong. That¡¯s the rule of reality.¡¯

    Akata¡¯s thoughts were calm as he had walked through the forest. By the time he reached the border of Misty Forest his face was pale and blood dripped from his mouth, because of the constant use of his runes. The light emanating out of him dimmed down greatly until it went out. The difference in pressure caused him to feel nonexistent in the world at the moment.

    However, even though he was extremely tired he didn¡¯t collapse. His vision was blurred and sometimes faded to black, his body was weary due to the continuous walking, and his robe was tattered and shredded from constantly going through rough plants and wood. He was in a sorry state, yet he didn¡¯t care about any of that. All he wanted to do was take Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s body back to the sect.

    ¡°We¡¯re here Peizhi Xiuying.¡± He spoke softly and in a hoarse voice as the view of the training grounds came into his eyes. It was nighttime at the moment and the dark clouds up above covered up the full moon in the sky, which made it almost completely pitch black.You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

    There were some disciples in the training field but the lack of pressure coming off of Akata made it so that they didn¡¯t notice him at all. Akata didn¡¯t pay them any attention anyways as he made his way through the training field. He was heading in the direction of Red Cloud Hall, towards the Elder Quarters. He was going to deliver Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s body to the upper members of the sect.

    ¡®They¡¯ll give you a proper burial. Once that is over, I¡¯ll train vigorously and then find that cultivator. Then I¡¯ll utterly obliterate him for our sake.¡¯ He thought to himself calmly. Even while walking through the sect he was incomparably calm to an extreme degree. This calmness was terrifying as nothing could make him flustered or flare his emotions.

    Akata himself didn¡¯t even know where this level of calmness came from. Although he suspected that it had something to do with his runes, he couldn¡¯t be too sure. However these thoughts quickly dispersed from his mind as he focused on the task at hand.

    He made his way to Red Cloud Hall to seek out the Elder¡¯s. Since it was night, the disciples were barely out, therefore Akata didn¡¯t encounter any of them. He kept up his same pace as he walked the path to the Elder Quarters.

    A few minutes later he was on the steps of Red Cloud Hall looking at the sect¡¯s banner hanging on the wall above the door. He looked down at Peizhi Xiuying and gave her a meaningful look. Looking at his face, it would be difficult for anyone to tell what he was thinking about.

    He then took a step forward and then another and another until he was inside of the main building of the sect. There he saw the red decorations around the room and lanterns that lit up the area. The warm feeling from the heat of the lanterns hit Akata¡¯s face, bringing warmth and color to him.

    In the Red Cloud Hall a young man stood by the wall looking at a painting. The young man wore a red daoist robe and had white hair that reached down to his shoulders. The white hair greatly contrasted his youth-like appearance. The young man turned and looked at Akata walking into the room with Peizhi Xiuying in his arms.

    The young man shook his head and took a step forward. In the next instant he was in front of Akata and looked deeply at him.

    Akata looked back at him, his face as blank as ever. His mind was calm to the point that the man in red daoist robes was astonished and pleased.

    The young man swished his sleeve and Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s body was swept up and vanished. He then turned around and made to leave with his hands behind his back.

    Akata knelt down and bowed to the young man with his forehead touching the ground. ¡°Please¡­ take good care of her.¡± Akata spoke out in a soft raspy voice. He didn¡¯t left his head up at all and had his eyes closed.

    The young man didn¡¯t turn around, stop, or speak back. He just continued on walking away until he was no longer in the room.

    Akata felt that the man had left the room but he still didn¡¯t raise his head. Only until the sun was beginning to raise did he pick himself up. His face had regained its color and his aura was back to normal. His face was blank but his crimson red eyes held a deep look in them. He had much time to think over his life and his future.

    ¡®This is the path I have chosen, therefore I shall see it through. I will reach the pinnacle for you and me. Nothing will set me off of this path. My first step shall be to conquer the cabins and then I shall step out of this sect and into the real world. Only when I reach the pinnacle of this sect can I be allowed to reach the pinnacle of the next place.

    I will find out who it was that killed you and who it was that sent them. Only until then will that shadow over my heart be brightened. Once I have found those people, only then will my cultivation progress¡­¡¯

    It was at this point that an image of Peizhi Xiuying and her plant came into Akata¡¯s mind. He thought about the cultivation of plants. He thought of how they too could become strong along with mortals and that they could reach the pinnacle of strength as well. It was with these thoughts that he made a decisive decision.

    ¡®Not only shall I train in the Realm of Mortals¡­ I shall train in the Realm of Plants as well! I will reach the absolute pinnacle of strength and uncover the secrets of plants that Peizhi Xiuying wasn¡¯t able to do. I will do this for her clan and pass down those secrets to them. It may not be much but I will absolutely try my best and accomplish these things!

    The world is run by the strong and therefore I won¡¯t have any say until I reach the height of strength at the top of the world. Once I do I¡¯ll be able to make the rules of the world. I will hold destiny in my hands. I¡¯ll¡­ be able to create my own reality and forsake this one!¡¯

    He then stood up and his eyes radiated with ambition. He was going to set out on a journey to become strong. Strong enough to change destinies and make his own reality. His utter determination made his runes spin and caused him to glow.

    He made his way outside of the room and then out of the building. It was early dusk and the sun was just rising. Many of the disciples were still in bed so the sect was still bare, yet to thrive with noise. Akata took a deep breath and looked in a certain direction.

    It was towards the direction of the cabins. His mind was focused on one thing and that was the seventh cabin. ¡°Ming Xu¡­¡± He spoke out softly as he remembered who was in the seventh cabin.

    At the thought of Ming Xu and their past Akata¡¯s eyes went wide as he came to a startling thought. ¡®Could it have been her. Xi Fe, and Xiun Wu who sent those people after me?¡¯ A murderous air came around Akata as he thought this. He took a step forward and made his way to the cabins.

 Chapter 34: Top Three Cabins

    Even though Akata hadn¡¯t slept in some days he was full of energy as he made his way to the seventh cabin. He kept his killing intent hidden within him so as not to startle any disciples. He kept a steady pace as he passed by residences and other buildings towards the seventh cabin.

    His face was blank and his crimson red eyes were burning with the desire to fight. His mind was racing with thoughts as he made his way over to the cabin,

    ¡®Now that I think about it, only those three truly have problems with me. Could they have sent that Jimin Fui after me to kill me. No¡­ It¡¯s only them who could have sent him after me.¡¯

    Akata stopped and stood in place for a moment. He took in a deep breath and slowly let it out. He calmed his mind and thought things through. ¡®If I am to find out what happened and where to find him I need to be more thoughtful. I need to obtain as much information as possible and those three will be my starting point.¡¯

    Third Cabin

    Xiun Wu, Xi Fe, Ming Xu, and Pulong Chu were seated in a circle. The atmosphere was rather dreary and stifling. The most upset of them all however was actually Pulong Chu. She wasn¡¯t upset that her people had gotten killed but rather, she was upset that her people had killed somebody.

    ¡®That Jimin Fui wasn¡¯t supposed to kill anybody. He was supposed to test out Akata¡¯s strength and see if he was worth for recruiting. If word gets out that I was the one who sent them there would be no way that Akata would join me. This matter is starting to become troublesome.

    Not only have I not gained an ally, I ended up gaining a new opponent. And a strong one at that too. Able to completely wreck the 4th Grade while he himself is only in the 3rd? That is strength that is worth recruiting¡­ but alas Jimin Fui had to mess everything up.¡¯

    She was in a really sour mood which actually made her fit in with the group''s mood in this moment.

    Xiun Wu was the first to speak up. ¡°The assassination has failed. It looks as if we¡¯re going to have to handle Akata the other way¡­ in the cabin duels. But that isn¡¯t the worst part of the matter. It seems as if Akata has strength that far surpasses the 4th Grade even though he himself is only in the 3rd.¡± Xiun Wu then turned to face Ming Xu.

    ¡°Ming Xu, you¡¯re going to have to be extra careful. Akata may be thinking that we sent those assassins after him therefore he will be showing some killing intent. If his killing intent becomes too great, abandon the match. However if he hesitates for even a moment then kill him if possible.¡± Xiun Wu spoke clearly.

    ¡°No worries, I will use any opportunity I have to take him out. Leave it to me.¡± Ming Xu spoke decisively.

    ¡°Mn.¡± Xiun Wu nodded. ¡°Once Akata suspects us of the assassination he will most certainly immediately challenge the seventh cabin. We will watch his match and make plans accordingly based on what we see. That will be all for now.¡±

    Pulong Chu immediately got up and walked out of the cabin not bothering to excuse herself. Xiun Wu and the others didn¡¯t impede her either. When she left out Xiun Wu put on a cold smile.

    ¡°Do you have something up your sleeve to deal with her?¡± Xi Fe laughed. He too putting on a cold smile as he saw Xiun Wu¡¯s.

    ¡°I do indeed. This should solve our problems with Akata and Pulong Chu in one fell swoop.¡± Xiun Wu laughed coldly. ¡°If all goes according to plan then you both will be seeing an increase in your cabin ranks.¡±Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation.

    Both Xi Fe and Ming Xu were astounded.

    ¡°This is what I have planned¡­¡±

    In the middle of the conversation Ming Xu¡¯s sect badge glowed brightly. Every sect member had a badge that was given to them by the Elders. It gave them information and tracked them. At the moment Ming Xu looked at her badge and surprise filled her face.

    ¡°It¡¯s¡­ it¡¯s Akata. He¡¯s challenging me to a duel already? It¡¯s only been a day since he was attacked, how could he have made it out of Misty Forest and recovered enough to be ready to challenge me?¡± Ming Xu was really astonished by this.

    Xiun Wu and Xi Fe were also taken back a bit by this piece of news. ¡°It seems that our plan must be put into action earlier than expected. No matter you all have gotten the gist of the plan. Now it¡¯s time to commence. Let¡¯s head out.¡±

    With that Xiun Wu and the rest stood up and made their way to the seventh cabin. Their robes fluttering in the wind they strode out of the third cabin and into the training field. It was still a bit dark from the sun not being all the way up, but even then disciples could be seen about getting in some early training.

    Second Cabin

    This cabin happened to be the biggest cabin in the training field. Not only was its size grand but also its appearance. It was adorned with red lanterns and banners displaying the sect¡¯s symbol. The cabin stood two stories tall and was a few hundred meters wide. Trees, flowers, bushes, fountains, and ponds covered the field around the cabin making it a serene place to be. Even the stone path leading up to the front door seemed to be too lavish to even step on.

    On the inside of the cabin on the second floor a bare skin woman could be seen in the bath. The water was warm to the point steam could be seen rising and bubbles covered the surface. The bath itself was golden, along with the trimming on the white walls.

    In the bath the woman was simply humming to herself and relaxing. Occasionally she would take a hand out the water and hold a finger in the air where upon a snowflake would form. The snowflake would dance atop her finger, spinning, jumping, and radiating a white glow. The appearance of the snowflake would make the temperature drop to the point where the steam would freeze solid.

    ¡°Ughh¡­¡± A long disgruntled sigh could be heard coming from the woman in the bath. She waved her finger and the snowflake on top dispersed. The temperature in the room immediately decreased causing a steam to rise up. The woman then stood up in the bath and walked out. She grabbed a blue towel and dried off her hair and then wrapped it around her body.

    ¡°When is Akata coming back? He¡¯s supposed to be my student yet I have barely taught him anything. Humph. This is not how I planned for things to go.¡± Her voice was soft yet a hint of pouting could be heard within. Of course this was none other than Ming Lu, the older sister of Ming Xu, and also the Second Ranked cultivator of the Red Cloud Sect.

    ¡°He¡¯s progressing way faster than what I have expected. Already becoming the Eighth Ranked cultivator this soon? He¡¯s almost at my level of speed. But no matter, the faster the better. I just really wish he would sit down with me so we can talk. But nooo¡­ he had to go into Misty Forest again with that Peizhi Xiuying. Humph.¡± Ming Lu¡¯s face puffed up.

    She then quickly shook her head and smacked her cheeks with her palms. ¡°Not that I care or anything!¡±

    It was at this moment that her sect badge started to glow. ¡°Eh?! He¡¯s challenging Little Xu Xu right now? When did he even get back?¡± She thought many things as she read the message from the sect badge. The badge passed out information to the sect members. Of course the first to be notified about the challenge was the person being challenged and then others would be notified shortly afterwards.

    Even as she was thinking and things were running through her head she dressed herself in shocking speed. At first she was only wrapped with a towel but in the next instant she wore a cyan robe that glittered in the light. Her hair was tied up into a ponytail that reached down to her lower back.

    ¡°I should go see this match personally. Akata aside, my Little Xu Xu is fighting. It¡¯s been awhile since I have last seen her fight. I hope Akata can bring out her full strength, yet I also hope that he doesn¡¯t bring out his full strength. This should be a good matchup and will be interesting to see. Although she is my little sister, I know that she is no match for Akata¡­¡±

    Ming Lu paused for a moment and raised her hand. A jade slip appeared in it where she quickly wrote something down. She folded up the piece of jade slip and sent it away with a toss. The slip flew across the cabin and then outside. It made its way to the center tower in the middle of the training field. In an open window of the tower a man could be seen staring out across the field.

    He held his hand up in the air and then grabbed the jade slip that was flying his way. He quickly read the jade slip and crumpled it up. A ball of flame could be seen in his hand the next instant as he burned the jade slip into ashes. Next his face revealed an interested look.

    ¡°So¡­ he¡¯s about to fight your younger sister? I guess I should keep my eye on Akata as well.¡± Even though he didn¡¯t speak loudly, his voice reverberated throughout the tower. He was still by the open window yet the sound didn¡¯t travel outside of the tower at all. It was as if his voice held a special power to it that he could control.

    As Ming Lu was writing on the jade slip her final words coalesced within her mind. ¡®Although she is my little sister, I know that she is no match for Akata¡­ and very soon none of us will be. He has something special about him that I just can¡¯t seem to figure out no matter how hard I try. On the surface he looks normal, but deep within him something is lurking. And that something outclasses us all.¡¯ She waved her hand sending the jade slip away.

    She took in a deep breath as her eyes radiated an expectant glow. She strode forward and was soon on the first floor of the cabin. She then strode out the front door and onto the beautiful yard in the cabin¡¯s area. Looking in the direction of the Seventh Cabin she gave a gentle laugh and smile then began to walk forward.

 Chapter 35: Ming Xu Arrives

    Ming Lu was walking along a path directly to the Seventh Cabin. She was dressed in a beautiful cyan robe that glittered in the rising sunlight. Her pace wasn¡¯t slow yet neither was it fast; it was smooth and flowed as she walked. She looked like a fairy, her robe swaying in the light breeze, as she strode forth.

    The air around her was cool to the point that it was almost freezing. The ground froze with each step that was taken by Ming Lu, creating footsteps of frost that quickly warmed and disappeared as she moved away.

    Ming Lu was actually in a rather good mood at the moment. ¡®Today is going to be a good day. First I¡¯ll get to see Akata¡¯s combat abilities. It will be very interesting to see how he fights.¡¯ Even though Ming Lu had taken on Akata as an apprentice, she had never once seen him fight before. She never saw him train in Misty Forest or challenge the disciples of the cabins. In fact the only reason she was going to watch him fight today is because his opponent this time was her sister Ming Xu.

    ¡®I¡¯ll also be able to see how much my sister has grown. Given our lineage, she should have made some progress even if she was on her own. However if it is not enough then I will take her training into my own hands. I won¡¯t care what she says about following Xiun Wu. If her strength is too poor I will request to have her taken back to the sect.¡¯ Ming Lu let out a breath and slowly shook her head.

    ¡®Calm down calm down. For now I will just watch the match and go from there.¡¯ She took another breath and made her way towards the cabin, no longer thinking of the duel between Akata and her sister Ming Xu. After a moment though she stopped and looked out into the distance.

    ¡°Jiandan Fuza.¡± After being silent for a while Ming Lu spoke out in a calm manner. Her voice carrying a hidden power that naturally froze the area around her.

    Some distance away a light laugh could be heard. It was a laugh filled with confidence and was soothing to the ears. As the laugh grew closer a young man about 18-19 years old could be seen approaching. He was wearing a white daoist robe that came down to his feet, yet never touched the ground. His black hair was tied into a bun.

    He gave off a natural feeling of transcendence that derived from years of him being above others. His face was smug as the aura of a superior being emanated from him. His walk was smooth to the point that he looked as if he was floating. In fact, he actually was floating in midair. With his cultivation base he was able to float a few feet off of the ground for a short amount of time.

    Ming Lu gave a look of disgust upon sensing Jiandan Fuza approaching. She didn¡¯t particularly like Jiandan Fuza. From his clan, to his personality, she almost didn¡¯t like anything about him. The only thing she she couldn¡¯t help but acknowledge about him was his talent for cultivation and his strength.

    ¡°Ming Lu.¡± He spoke out calmly, his voice only being heard by her. ¡°What a surprise that you would contact me. I was planning on going back to meditation today but I just had to make an exception for you. Truly a surprise, truly a surprise.¡± He gave a light laugh as he came closer to Ming Lu.

    Ming Lu only looked at him and rolled her eyes. ¡°I didn¡¯t contact you to get close to you, only to show you something that will be interesting.¡± She spoke calmly, her voice becoming colder as she spoke.

    ¡°Ohh. You must be talking about Akata. While he has made a name for himself and grown at a fast rate, that shouldn¡¯t be anything special or interesting. Especially on our standards.¡± Jiandan Fuza had a disappointed look on his face.

    ¡°Of course just his growth rate wouldn¡¯t make me want to contact you. Otherwise I wouldn¡¯t make the effort to take him on as my apprentice.¡± Ming Lu retorted. ¡°Akata is special. Not only is his growth rate spectacular, it may even be better than ours, at the very least it is equal to ours. But not just his growth rate makes him special but his talent as well.¡±If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.

    Jiandan Fuza looked disinterested as he listened to Ming Lu. He just didn¡¯t think it was worth paying attention to someone who was so below him in strength that there was no comparison between them. He just couldn¡¯t put Akata in his eyes.

    Ming Lu saw the look on Jiandan Fuza¡¯s face and felt disinterested in explaining things to him any further. ¡°Well it¡¯s up to you if you feel like watching or not. However, be wary of Akata because he will definitely surpass you sooner or later. And at his rate of progress I¡¯m betting that it will come sooner.¡± Ming Lu stopped talking and continued on her way to the Seventh Cabin.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about me. That little runt can¡¯t even dream of the level that I am going to reach in the future. He could be ten times more talented and it still wouldn¡¯t help him to even reach my current level.¡± Jiandan Fuza managed to laugh out.

    ¡°I thought that you were a serious cultivator with great potential but I guess I was wrong about that. Tsk tsk. Truly a waste of a great mind. I¡¯m done with this conversation now.¡± Jiandan Fuza turned to leave.

    Ming Lu didn¡¯t try to stop him either. She wasn¡¯t the least bit apprehensive about trying to persuade him. She just smiled in his direction as he made his way back to his tower. ¡®We¡¯ll see when he grows more in the future.¡¯ She turned and continued on her way to the Seventh Cabin.

    ¡®Akata will make great use to me in the future. It will be great to have him owe me a favor now so that he will repay it in the future. Hmm. But what should I do to have him owe me one?¡¯ Ming Lu pondered this as she strode toward the cabin. Her graceful steps were as soft as snow.

    Seventh Cabin

    Sitting cross legged in the middle of the arena, Akata had his eyes closed. He wasn¡¯t cultivating or connecting with nature but was calming his mind. He breathed in long deep breaths and let out slow ones.

    His red robes were torn but instead of making him look haggard or rough, but it instead made him look imposing. His black hair rested on the back of his neck, it was rough and wavy yet even so it still seemed to fit him. His face was blank and calm but the air around his body was cold.

    Everybody around the arena could detect the killing will growing inside and outside of Akata as he sat there. Akata was trying his best to hide it but even so it still spread out. Nobody understood why Akata had such a strong killing will, and nobody wanted to find out either. Over the past few months Akata had grown at an astonishing speed. So much so that nobody dared to provoke him.

    The air around the arena was stifling but even so that didn¡¯t mean that it wasn¡¯t lively. Disciples could be seen everywhere getting ready for the challenge that was about to take place. It wasn¡¯t often that the cabins would challenge each other, most likely it wouldn¡¯t happen unless one made a breakthrough in cultivation.

    Fang Zuwa stood in the crowd as he looked at Akata. His face was complicated as he had many thoughts running through his head. No one could tell what he was thinking but someone could most certainly guess that it had to do with Akata.

    After a while Fang Zuwa let out a long sigh and shook his head. He then silently murmured to himself, ¡°It¡¯s only been a short while yet he is already challenging Ming Xu for her place in the Seventh Cabin. He has utterly surpassed me and yet¡­ he is still continuing to grow and progress. Just how far can he go? Will he be able to fight for the position of the first ranked disciple?¡± At this moment Fang Zuwa¡¯s eyes glowed with a bright light. He just couldn¡¯t imagine someone taking the spot of the first rank from Jiandan Fuza.

    Soon everything began to go quiet. The crowd went silent along with nature. Birds, wind, insects, all of that couldn¡¯t be heard. It wasn¡¯t until someone yelled out that an uproar resounded.

    ¡°Ming Xu is here!¡± Someone yelled out, breaking the silence.

    ¡°She¡¯s here! She¡¯s finally here! Now this match can get started.¡±

    ¡°It feels like I¡¯ve been waiting forever for this to start. Now let¡¯s see how much stronger Akata has become!¡±

    Tens of hundreds of cries could be heard as Ming Xu came into the view of everyone. She strode forward with a calm face. The excitement of the crowd didn¡¯t impede her at all as walked to the arena. Her aura wasn¡¯t flustered and was as calm as a snowfall.

    ¡°Is that Xi Fe and Xiun Wu too?! Look! Look!¡± Another cry could be heard almost right after Ming Xu was seen.

    ¡°It is Xi Fe and Xiun Wu! They¡¯re ranked fifth and third respectively in the cabins!¡±

    ¡°The leaders of the Cloud Rift Crew are here! Xiun Wu as the leader with Xi Fe and Ming Xu as back up.¡± Even as this person spoke several figures in the crowd knelt down on one knee as they saw these people. If you looked closely you would be able to notice that all of these figures had cloud emblem on their sleeves.

    ¡°Greetings leader Xiun Wu! Greetings co-leader Xi Fe and co-leader Ming Xu.¡± The disciples who had knelt down called out in unison. Their voices travelling throughout the area as one. These were some members of the Cloud Rift Crew.

    Xiun Wu simply nodded his head in response to the call. Xi Fe commanded, ¡°You may rise!¡± His voice booming and echoing in the ears of everyone around. Only then did the kneeling members rise to their feet. They clasped hands and nodded.

    Ming Xu never paid any attention to the people as she strode toward the arena where Akata was sitting. As soon as she laid eyes on him she felt a cold sensation run through her body, she slightly shivered but soon recovered.

    However when she stopped shivering, Akata slowly opened his eyes to look at her. When Ming Xu looked into his eyes she felt a sudden feeling of fear rise within her. It was so intense that she unconsciously froze in place.

    When she stopped moving Akata finally stood up.

 Chapter 36: The Crowd Prepares

    Ming Xu felt a chill run down her spine when her eyes crossed Akata¡¯s. Her body felt as if it had froze over. It was such a strong feeling that she stopped in place and didn¡¯t even attempt to approach her own arena. Fear swelled up inside of her and beads of sweat poured down her forehead as she stood in place.

    Akata stood up slowly and pulled back his killing intent as much as he could. He had unconsciously let it slip when he sensed Ming Xu, Xi Fe, and Xiun Wu approaching. Even still, it was strong enough to send chills down her spine, but at least now she was able to move.

    ¡®What a strong desire to kill!¡¯ Sweat still poured down her face as she thought this. ¡®How could HE harbor such a killing will.¡¯ She was astonished on a whole other level right now. Akata¡¯s killing intent was strong enough to stop her in place.

    Of course Ming Xu wasn¡¯t the only one to feel the killing intent directly. Xi Fe and Xiun Wu also felt a bit of it, however it was on a lower scale since Ming Xu was in the lead. They stopped in place, not because they were suppressed, but because they were surprised.

    ¡°What a strong killing intent!¡± Xi Fe couldn¡¯t help but say as his face turned serious. ¡°How could his killing intent rise to such a level? Nobody his age should have a killing intent that is this strong. And he¡¯s deliberately directing it at us. Could he have found out that we tried to kill him in the forest?¡± Xi Fe asked Xiun Wu.

    Xiun Wu simply looked at Akata with a calm face. ¡°We¡¯ll have to see as this match goes on. Given how he acts we¡¯ll be able to find out what he knows.¡± Xiun Wu¡¯s voice was soft and held a superior air in it. His hands were behind his back as he strode toward the front of the crowd. Nobody impeded him as a path was made.

    ¡°Don¡¯t start this duel without me hehe.¡± A soft cheerful voice could be heard some distance away from the arena but as it fell it came closer. The air became colder and light snow fell in the middle of the crowd. In the snow a beautiful figure could be seen standing there. She had on a cyan robe that glittered in the sunlight.

    By now the sun was fully visible and its rays showed on everything. However the warmth of the sun couldn¡¯t do anything to the decreasing temperature caused by Ming Lu. Snowflakes danced around her body as she stood facing the arena. Her smile plastered on her face and her cheeks rosy, she looked happy to be there.

    ¡°Demoness Ming Lu! It¡¯s Demoness Ming Lu!¡± Someone who was by her happened to scream out. This in turn caused others to follow suit and also yell out.

    ¡°What could have made Demoness Ming Lu come here?!¡± Another disciple bellowed out.

    ¡°Ah! Her younger sister is the one being challenged right now.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t forget that Akata is also her apprentice.¡±

    ¡°Her younger sister and her only apprentice are about to duel! This is going to be one crazy challenge today!¡±

    Ming Lu just looked on at the arena not paying any attention to the surrounding disciples. Considering the level of her cultivation base, with just a quick scan of her surroundings she could tell the situation.

    ¡®Hm? She¡¯s scared of something. Could it be Akata she is scared of? Maybe she¡¯s scared to kill him. Well given his strength now I don¡¯t see how she could manage to do that. Wait a minute.¡¯ She took a closer look at Akata and her eyes went wide.

    ¡®3rd Grade of the Mortal Rank?! Already?! He¡¯s really progressing at a fast speed. With that kind of speed by the time he manages to make it to the Fourth or Third Ranked disciple he should be at the Fourth Grade.¡¯ Ming Lu couldn¡¯t help but to be amazed right now. Akata¡¯s cultivating speed was just too shocking and was increasing at a fast rate.Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.

    Xiun Wu had his eyes on Ming Lu when she appeared and originally his face was calm. But when he saw her eyes go wide all of a sudden he rose an eyebrow in thought. ¡®What could have her so surprised?¡¯ He mused to himself.

    Xiun Wu followed her line of sight and saw that it was toward Akata. ¡®Akata? What could be wrong with him?¡¯ He hadn¡¯t paid any attention to Akata this whole time. He may have glanced at him a few times but that was it.

    Thinking of how Ming Lu¡¯s eyes went wide he focused his attention on Akata at the moment. When he focused in his own eyes went wide for a second. ¡°Impossible?!¡± He silently murmured to himself. He just couldn¡¯t believe what he saw.

    Xi Fe who was beside him could hear this however and asked in a low voice, ¡°What happened?¡± He saw the look on Xiun Wu¡¯s face and thought something was serious.

    Not answering immediately, Xiun Wu took a deep breath and slowly let it out to forcefully calm himself. After a moment his face was as calm as it had been. ¡°Akata seems to be in the 3rd Grade of the Mortal Rank. That Pulong Chu said that he was still in the 2nd Grade. It looks as if she tricked us about the level of his strength.¡± Xiun Wu said calmly as he continued to study Akata a bit more carefully.

    ¡°3rd Grade already?! He¡¯s already at my level of strength this soon? How is that possible?¡± Xi Fe¡¯s face changed abruptly as he heard this. He unconsciously looked towards Akata with a serious look on his face.

    It had taken years for Xi Fe to get to the level of strength that he was at right now. Given a bit more time he would be able to break through to the 4th Grade. But Akata wasn¡¯t even considered a cultivator a few months ago. Yet now he possessed strength at the 3rd Grade of the Mortal Rank. Just how fast could he progress through the Grades of cultivation?

    At first Xi Fe was extremely confident in taking on Akata, but now that confidence began to waver. Soon it began to wither away bit by bit. It wasn¡¯t that he was afraid of facing Akata but was scared of the fact that Akata had the ability to utterly surpass him. Once that happened, any grudge that Akata had with him, Akata could solve them with ease even if it meant killing him.

    This thought crossed Xi Fe¡¯s mind and he unconsciously started to make the decision of getting away from Akata. His mind was just too jumbled up for him to think straight at the moment.

    ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry about him. I¡¯ll personally handle him. There¡¯s no further need to include yourself, Akata is just too fast with cultivating and if his speed is anything to base his strength off of, then only I will be a match for him.¡± Xiun Wu spoke calmly.

    Xiun Wu was back to being clear headed and finally managed to completely calm his mind. It was true that with his strength he would be able to handle Akata. But if Akata was given enough time to grow then that gap in strength would surely become smaller and smaller.

    Xi Fe regained his composure and nodded in agreement. While he might be able to handle Akata, Xiun Wu still could. ¡°Right¡­ right.¡± He said with a shaky voice. After a bit of time he thought of something. ¡°What about Ming Xu? Are we going to inform her?¡± Ming Xu was about to face Akata head on and she was even weaker than him. Of course he had concern for her.

    With a calm look and voice Xiun Wu responded lightly. ¡°No. As of lately it has been seeming as if her loyalty has been faltering so I¡¯m going to use this opportunity to test her. If she does what she was told to the best of her ability then good¡­ but if not¡­¡± Xiun Wu shook his head and didn¡¯t speak any further. It was an easy task to guess the meaning of his words.

    Xi Fe nodded his head in agreement and didn¡¯t speak any further as well. With that they both turned their heads to look at the arena where Akata was. Xi Fe slowly looked over to see Ming Xu making her way over to Akata.

    Ming Lu was in the crowd looking at Ming Xu as well. Of course she noticed the fear that Ming Xu had displayed. In her heart she couldn¡¯t help but be sympathetic towards her.

    Not only did she notice the fear from Ming Xu, she also detected the killing intent from Akata. She was a bit taken aback from it and then her face turned deadly serious. ¡®Is that directed towards Little Xu Xu? What could she have done for you to gain such a strong killing intent?¡¯

    Ming Lu went into a deep thought before noticing something. ¡®Where is Peizhi Xiuying? If Akata is here then surely she would be as well considering she was with him. Wait a minute.¡¯ Ming Lu¡¯s eyes went wide. ¡®Could they have planned to kill Akata in the forest but it failed, and instead Peizhi Xiuying got mixed up in it? If that is true the only reason why his killing intent is so strong is if she died.¡¯ After thinking things through Ming Lu realized this was the only possibility.

    She shook her head and then focused in on Akata. ¡®Even if that happened he better not try to kill my sister! Apprenticeship aside, even if he was my own clan member I will kill him in body and soul.¡¯Ming Lu was really protective of her sister after all. She cared deeply for her and wouldn¡¯t let anything harm her in any way.

    The only reason why Ming Xu was still in Xiun Wu¡¯s group was because she could still grow in it. Ming Lu just wanted Ming Xu to grow faster with her. But if Xiun Wu tried to harm her, Ming Lu wouldn¡¯t hesitate to protect her sister and destroy the whole Cloud Rift Crew.

    Ming Lu stood there quietly, watching for any signs that Akata was going in for the kill. She knew that Ming Xu was no match for Akata in the first place and now that Akata was in a killing mood he obviously wouldn¡¯t hold back.

    First Tower

    Up in the tower on the training field Jiandan Fuza stood in the window looking out. He watched what was happening below with a calm face. He could see Ming Xu react with fear, the serious look on Ming Lu¡¯s and Xiun Wu¡¯s faces, and briefly felt the killing intent radiating from Akata.

    He took in a deep breath and smiled. He then chuckled,¡°This is turning out to be quite interesting now that I think about it.¡±

 Chapter 37: Confirmation

    Akata watched coldly as Ming Xu walked up onto the arena floor. Neither of them spoke a word, it was deathly silent on the arena. Akata walked over slowly to right in front of Ming Xu. She didn¡¯t retreat at all and let him approach. Soon they stood there facing each other.

    After a bit of silence, surprisingly Akata was the one to speak up. He spoke slowly and softly to where only Ming Xu could hear. ¡°Did you have anything to do with Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s death?¡±

    Ming Xu was taken back and her eyes went wide with shock and confusion. Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s death? Since when did she die? She couldn¡¯t get a word out over her mind being jumbled.

    Akata could see her facial expressions clearly as spoke again. ¡°No need to answer. Prepare yourself.¡± He jumped back and then readied himself to fight.

    Ming Xu was scared witless. She hadn¡¯t heard anything of Peizhi Xiuying dying. Could she had died when the assassination on Akata failed? Is that why his killing intent was so great? If so it all made since. She knew that she wasn¡¯t going to get out of this with ease. She gulped down some saliva and readied herself.

    Even as she stood her body slightly trembled in place. Cold sweat ran down her forehead as she stared at Akata. She didn¡¯t even wish to fight anymore. She looked into Akata¡¯s eyes which was cold as can be.

    Akata looked at her with cold merciless eyes and pulled his arm back. He then launched a fist at her sending a blast of air in her direction. The blast traveled fast and ferociously towards Ming Xu.

    To her it felt like a giant wall was coming to smash her into nothingness. She immediately flashed an incantation gesture and a snowflake, about a meter in diameter, appeared below her feet. The snowflake quickly moved up in the air carrying Ming Xu with it. Once in the air it disappeared. Below her the ground blasted apart sending pieces of the arena flying in all directions.

    Before she could regain her senses however another blast was headed in her direction. She was floating in midair and flashed another incantation gesture where another snowflake appeared below her feet and carried her off, successfully dodging that blast as well.

    Everywhere she stopped another blast of air could be seen heading for her. She would flash an incantation gesture and be carried off by a snowflake that would appear below her feet. All she could manage to do was keep dodging. She didn¡¯t have time at all to go on the offensive.

    The crowd was boisterous as the duel started. The forceful nature of Akata versus the gracefulness of Ming Xu. It was a great match-up and would provide a great amount of insight for the disciples around.

    ¡°Ming Xu¡¯s Snow Steps are as fluid as ever.¡± One disciple said.

    ¡°Yes. Just as no two snowflakes are alike, her movements are equally mysterious and hard to track.¡± Another one spoke.

    ¡°It¡¯s actually amazing that Akata is able to send those blasts in her direction with such speed and precision. His foresight is utterly astonishing.¡±

    The crowd watched on in amazement as they watched Ming Xu display her Snow Steps and Akata send out those blasts of air. No two evasions of Ming Xu were the same yet Akata was able to send out his blasts directly at her.

    Ming Lu watched closely making sure Akata didn¡¯t go in for the kill, yet she was amazed by what she saw. ¡®He¡¯s not trying to kill her? His foresight is extremely accurate to a terrifying degree and with that he could predict where she is going before she even knows. Yet he¡¯s not actually attacking her?¡¯If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

    She looked over at Akata a bit more closely. ¡®He still has killing intent in his eyes and it hasn¡¯t faded away in the least. What is he planning on doing?¡¯ She was at a loss of what was happening. She wasn¡¯t the only one at a loss either.

    Xiun Wu was watching closely, paying attention to everything that was happening. ¡°Since when did Akata become this strong? Not only are his fist strikes able to create blasts in the air, but his foresight is amazing. Even I am not able to keep up with Ming Xu¡¯s Snow Steps as great as he can.¡± At this thought Xiun Wu grew a bit irritated. Akata was better than him at something? Preposterous!

    ¡°Why is she not going on the offensive yet? Is she stalling for something? She can at least try to attack while she is in the midst of dodging. Tsk. She¡¯s not even trying to kill him, doesn¡¯t even look like she want to anymore.

    This can¡¯t be all of Akata¡¯s strength though. I need for Ming Xu to attack and draw out his full strength in order for me to get a good read on his level. But at this state you can easily annihilate him.¡±

    Xiun Wu looked over at Xi Fe who was beside him and said. Xi Fe was looking at the battle and completely regained his composure as he watched on. The fear that he originally had inside him washed away without a trace. He even started to laugh hysterically.

    ¡°Of course I will be able to easily annihilate him with no problem. He wouldn¡¯t even have a chance to attack back with the level of strength he is displaying now. In fact it wouldn¡¯t even be any fun to face him like that. While I admit it is strong for a 3rd Grade cultivator to possess that kind of strength it won¡¯t even call for me to use half of my own strength.¡± Xi Fe spoke extremely confidently.

    ¡°But it would be good to see what else Akata has up his sleeve.¡± Xi Fe thought for a moment. Xiun Wu spoke up. ¡°I have an idea to get him to fight.¡± He chuckled.

    He walked up to one of the members of the Cloud Rift Crew and spoke. The member nodded his head and walked up to the side of the stage near as close to Akata as he could get. He used a technique that only allowed for Akata to hear him. When he spoke Akata¡¯s eyes went wide and his fists became a bit more chaotic.

    Xiun Wu laughed and returned to the side of Xi Fe. ¡°What did you tell him to say?¡± Xi Fe asked curiously. He obviously saw the change in Akata¡¯s attitude take place when Xiun Wu went closer to the arena.

    ¡°Oh just a little something. Now to motivate Ming Xu.¡± Xiun Wu cleared his throat and yelled out. ¡°Ming Xu what are you doing?! Are you disobeying orders? Fight back and stop dodging! This isn¡¯t how Cloud Rift fights! Hurry up or suffer some consequences.¡±

    After he finished verbally assaulting Ming Xu, Xiun Wu calmly laughed. Xi Fe looked over in praise. ¡°I see, first you entice Akata to make him more ruthless to pressure Ming Xu more. Then you threaten Ming Xu to have her fight back and in turn entice Akata further. Essentially you just created a circle so they further entice each other. Well done.¡± Xi Fe nodded his head in praise.

    ¡°Now to see the results of my labor.¡± Xiun Wu said as he watched on.

    Ming Lu of course was paying attention and noticed a person walked up and speak some words to Akata. She then saw how Akata¡¯s attacks became more chaotic. Coupled with the fact that Xiun Wu yelled out what he did she could tell he had planned something.

    ¡°That little bastard! I¡¯ll tear him into pieces soon.¡± She said gnashing her teeth together. How could she not tell what he was doing. ¡°He¡¯s trying to sacrifice my sister in order to get Akata to fight more seriously. I need to figure out what that guy said to Akata.¡± A jade slip appeared in her hand as she imprinted it with message then sent it off.

    Ming Xu was being bombarded by a sudden increase of Akata¡¯s attacks. Then Xiun Xu¡¯s words rang into her ears. She grit her teeth and flashed an incantation gesture mid dodge and pointed at Akata. ¡°Snow Tempest!¡± She yelled out.

    Razor sharp snowflakes started to appear in the area around Akata. More and more appeared and when they did they rotated around him until they looked like a tornado revolving around him. The area became frighteningly cold as the snowflakes appeared.

    With the appearance of Snow Tempest Ming Xu could take a break from constantly dodging. She knew that her attack wouldn¡¯t do much to Akata since it wasn¡¯t fully powered. She landed on the ground and flashed a two handed incantation gesture and pointed at Akata. ¡°Whiteout Gale Shards!¡±

    A cold wind filled with ice crystals sprang up and bombarded the snowy tornado, adding more strength to it. The Snow Tempest grew in size and the sharp snowflakes combined with the ice crystals to add a more terrifying shredding ability. The ground around Akata tore up. Akata who was within the tornado couldn¡¯t be seen within.

    Eventually the tornado started to turn red with blood and it looked more like a blood tornado. This wasn¡¯t Ming Lu¡¯s Blood Snow Tempest so it didn¡¯t get stronger with the addition of blood. Ming Xu stood there looking at the Snow Tempest. Her breathing was a little haggard from continuously dodging and then using her full strength to fight back.

    She looked at the Snow Tempest and sighed to herself. She didn¡¯t really want to fight Akata. The tempest was a deep crimson color. ¡°I actually¡­ I actually killed him? No¡­ no no no no no! I couldn¡¯t have.¡± She fell to her knees with a pale face. ¡°I didn¡¯t mean to. I didn¡¯t think this would kill him. I should¡¯ve held back more.¡± She swished her sleeve in order to disperse the tempest.

    Xiun Wu looked on closely at the crimson red tempest with a bit of disbelief. It was hard to believe that Akata would be easily killed by the Snow Tempest skill of Ming Xu. The amount of blood that showed up in the tempest was too much for a regular person to put out and still live. It was certainly enough to confirm that Akata had been killed.

    ¡°Humph. It¡¯s hard to think that he would be killed so easily. Considering he wasn''t killed in the forest. No matter, at least he is out of the way-¡± Before he could finish his sentence a sound came from the tempest.

    A cold snort resounded from the tempest along with a cold voice. ¡°Humph. I guess that confirms it then.¡±

 Chapter 38: And...

    Akata gave a cold snort from within the dispersing Snow Tempest. He was standing in the middle of it and had on a calm face. His skin was in perfect condition with no visible signs of harm. The blood that was in the tempest wasn¡¯t his at all, it was stored up blood that he had accumulated and planned to absorb later. He merely released a bit to help move along his plan.

    Akata had his nature energy spread out the whole time he was fighting Ming Xu. In fact he wasn¡¯t even focused on Ming Xu at all since she gave her answer earlier. He could tell that she had nothing to do with Peizhi Xiuying and had no knowledge of her death at all.

    His nature energy had the ability to sense his surroundings. That included the various emotions of living beings in the area. This was why people who practiced using nature energy could surprise attack someone perfectly; because they could sense when they were completely off guard!

    Akata used this to sense Ming Xu¡¯s emotions when he asked her about Peizhi Xiuying. At the time her emotions immediately turned into utter surprise and disbelief. Because of that Akata knew she had nothing to do with Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s death. So instead of focusing on her he sent his nature energy out to cover over the area of Xiun Wu and Xi Fe.

    He saw how Xiun Wu sent someone up to instigate the fight, so he played along with it. After hearing Xiun Wu shout towards Ming Xu he became aware of how distant Ming Xu was in a commanding role. From Xiun Wu¡¯s words Akata could tell that he was using Ming Xu. And from Akata¡¯s nature sense he could feel the sinister emotions emanating off of Xiun Wu.

    This made it clear to Akata what was going on. From the beginning he had suspected that Xiun Wu had something to do with the attack in the forest. From his last words Akata immediately knew what happened with no question.

    ¡®Tsk. And he sent someone to tell me that Peizhi Xiuying could be brought back if I take out Ming Xu. He desperately wanted me to go all out. If it wasn¡¯t for the fact that I saw him send that person I might have fell for it.¡¯ Akata¡¯s heart twinged with pain.

    His eyes had went wide with surprise at the method Xiun Wu used to try and provoke him. If he truly didn¡¯t see Xiun Wu send that person over he might have really killed Ming Xu. After letting out a long sigh he turned and faced in the direction of Xiun Wu with cold eyes.

    Akata waved his hand and the Snow Tempest immediately flew apart. The tempest might have been able to heavily injure a normal cultivator at the 3rd Grade or even kill them, but Akata¡¯s body strength alone was at the level of the 5th Grade. How could a trifling attack such as this injure him in the least?

    Everyone around saw Akata blast apart the Snow Tempest and were stunned to see that he was perfectly fine. For them, who all were below the 3rd Grade, that Snow Tempest mixed in with the Whiteout Gale Shards was a truly terrifying ability. Yet Akata was unharmed by it, just how terrifying was Akata then?

    Xi Fe¡¯s eyes went wide when he saw Akata unharmed by the Snow Tempest. He had to question himself to think if he could even come out unharmed by that attack. Xiun Wu raised an eyebrow in confusion as he saw Akata emerge from within the tempest.

    Akata looked at Xiun Wu coldly and spoke. ¡°Ming Xu, do you concede or not?¡± He was still facing Xiun Wu with cold eyes but spoke to Ming Xu. He didn¡¯t feel like dealing with her anymore and instead chose to ask her if she felt like continuing.

    Ming Xu, along with the other cabin members, could instantly tell the true meaning of his words. ¡®You can¡¯t beat me, so give up.¡¯ Those words were unspoken but resonated in the mind of Ming Xu. She stared at Akata wide eyed. Unconsciously, she looked over to Xiun Wu who was staring at Akata with cold eyes. She didn¡¯t know what to do.

    ¡°Give up¡­ you¡¯re no match for him. Clearly you can see that can¡¯t you? There¡¯s no reason to continue this fight when you have no hope of winning. I thought this would be too big of a task for you.¡± Xiun Wu spoke out towards Ming Xu. His voice echoed throughout the area, it was cold and emotionless.This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

    A loud cold snort immediately resounded after Xiun Wu¡¯s words fell. ¡°WHO THE FUCK DO YOU THINK YOU ARE TALKING TO MY SISTER LIKE THAT?! YOU MUST BE BEGGING ME TO TEAR YOU INTO PIECES THIS VERY MOMENT!! YOU¡¯RE NOTHING BUT TRASH IN MY EYES AND I SHOULD HAVE TAKEN YOU OUT THE FIRST TIME I SAW YOU!! TSK. YOU¡¯RE NO MATCH FOR ME!! HOW ABOUT YOU SAY THOSE WORDS AGAIN HUH? I DARE YOU! I DOUBLE DARE YOU TO! I SWEAR I WILL RIP YOU TO SHREDS!!

    As the words rang out, the cultivators at the 1st Grade felt their ears go numb and some even fell unconscious. Ming Lu was truly enraged right now. She couldn¡¯t even restrain herself at the moment as she strode forth and flashed an incantation gesture and pointed toward Xiun Wu.

    ¡°CRIMSON BLIZZARD STORM!¡± As her voice fell a cloud about thirty meters in diameter appeared above Xiun Wu. The cloud was a dark grey and brought a freezing sensation to the area. Grey ice crystals began to fall from the cloud. First one at a time and then a whole storm could be seen falling.

    The ice crystals tore through everything they touched. The ground, the arena floor, and even some people who couldn¡¯t escape in time. Those people were shredded into pieces and their blood turned into ice. The blood ice then raised up into the air to be absorbed into the cloud, then the cloud took on a crimson glow. The ice crystals that shot out of it now were a bit reddish now and were sharper than the previous ones. As more blood was added to the cloud it expanded in size and grew stronger.

    Ming Lu held no concern for the people she was cutting through because those people were followers of Xiun Wu. They were all members of the Cloud Rift Crew. She would use them to strengthen her attack and annihilate Xiun Wu.

    Xiun Wu looked over at Ming Lu and gave a cold snort. ¡°Give up¡­ you¡¯re no match for me.¡± He spoke out coldly as he flashed an incantation gesture and pointed in the air. ¡°Celestial Storm.¡±

    A cloud that was just as big as Ming Lu¡¯s appeared above the one she had just made. It was a golden cloud that looked like it belonged amongst the people in heaven. It gave off the aura of a supreme figure as it appeared. Rumbling could be heard from the golden cloud as a giant raindrop tinged with gold formed and fell from the cloud. The raindrop looked to be the size of a small meteor as it crashed down onto the crimson-grey cloud below it. Instantly the crimson-grey cloud dispersed.

    The meteor sized raindrop didn¡¯t stop there as Xiun Wu waved his finger and pointed toward Ming Xu. ¡°There¡¯s no reason to have trash follow me around.¡± The raindrop flew in the direction of Ming Xu with the aura of supreme might.

    Ming Lu was panting because she had used all her strength to summon that storm of ice. Her face was pale yet she still had a cold look in her eyes. When Xiun Wu summoned a domineering cloud of his own and destroyed hers, it was shocking. He had destroyed way too easily and casually too.

    ¡°Was he hiding his true strength all this time?¡± She regained focus just in time to see the raindrop approaching, not her, but her sister Ming Xu! She flashed an incantation gesture and an ice crystal about a meter in length appeared. She pointed in the direction of the raindrop and the ice crystal flew. ¡°Not good I can¡¯t make it in time!¡± She had spent all her strength before and the speed of the ice crystal was too slow.

    Akata stood to the side with cold eyes watching what was taking place. When he saw the raindrop approaching Ming Xu he gave a cold snort. ¡°If I don¡¯t want them to die then¡­ they¡¯re staying alive!¡±

    Akata activated his Shadowfeet skill and took a step forward, instantly he was in front of Ming Xu. He pulled his arm back and it started to glow with a gold and red light. He clenched his hand into a fist and a small illusory rock could be seen just above the knuckles. The illusory rock grew in size and as it did the pressure in the area increased greatly.

    The ice crystal which was barely formed by Ming Lu instantly shattered into pieces raining down on the members of the Cloud Rift Crew below. The giant raindrop slowed down a bit and wavered some but still continued. Akata gave it a cold look and then sent a punch out. The punch sent the illusory rock flying through the air, it gathered the energy in the area and grew in size until it was a quarter of the size of the raindrop!

    The raindrop staggered a bit from the increasing pressure until it stopped completely. It couldn¡¯t move further anymore! Xiun Wu¡¯s eyes went wide as he flashed another incantation gesture sending out another equally sized raindrop. Blood oozed from his mouth as he flashed another incantation gesture and pointed to the two raindrops. ¡°Heavenly Waterdrops!¡±

    The two giant raindrops trembled and then emitted a golden glow. The two then converged together and as they did they sucked in the surrounding energy as well! The raindrop sucked in the energy in the area, strengthening itself and becoming bigger. The pressure from it actually stronger than Akata¡¯s illusory rock!

    Akata¡¯s eyes became colder as he, surprisingly, flashed an incantation gesture of his own. ¡®This needs to work. I¡¯m not good with magic but I¡¯ll try my luck with it now.¡¯ His killing intent bellowing out he pointed at the illusory rock. ¡°Astral Obliteration!¡±

    Blood oozed out the corners of Akata¡¯s mouth and he eventually coughed up multiple mouthfuls of blood. His body even visibly withered at the cost of using this attack. He was pouring his all in it in order to make this work.

    The illusory rock trembled greatly in response to Akata¡¯s will. A bright golden light erupted out of the illusory rock. The ground shook and cracked under the intense pressure being exerted by the illusory rock. The cracks spread wide and rocks of all sizes started to rise into the air. The rocks flew toward the illusory rock as if feeding it, and in response the illusory rock became more corporeal.

    Akata coughed up one final mouthful of blood before shaking his head. ¡°This is all I can do for now.¡± The illusory rock was now about one percent corporeal but even that one percent caused such a backlash on Akata. His face still cold he sent out the rock to combat the giant raindrop.

    Everything happened in a mere breath of time! It was a shocking scene. The pressure in the area was too great and anyone under the 2nd Grade would be crushed to death in an instant. The two attacks closed in on each other and¡­

 Chapter 39: Banished

    And¡­ nothing. There was utter silence in the arena. One moment two utterly strong forces were closing in on each other and the next they vanished without a trace. It happened too suddenly and caught everybody off guard.

    Xiun Wu, Ming Lu, Ming Xu, Xi Fe, Fang Zuwa, Xiao Pao, Akata, and even Jiandan Fuza, who was in his tower watching from a distance, had wide eyes. They were shocked to see that nothing happened when clearly something big was supposed to.

    The arena grounds were mostly clear as no cultivator in the 1st Grade could be seen, as well as most of the 2nd Grade cultivators. Only those who could defend themselves with their own strength still remained in the area. And all those people''s faces were lost too.

    ¡°Wha¡­ what happened?¡± Fang Zuwa asked.

    ¡°Nothing¡­ nothing happened, that¡¯s what¡¯s wrong right now.¡± Xiao Pao retorted with slight derision.

    All of a sudden a drunken laugh could be heard in the middle of the arena floor. Everybody turned their heads in the direction of the laugh. Sitting in the middle of the arena floor was a young man in his mid twenties drinking from a flagon of alcohol. He wore brown furs and was an Elder of the sect.

    ¡°Fourth Elder?¡± Ming Xu said.

    ¡°Fourth Elder took a sip from the flagon and looked out at the various disciples around. He stood up and walked towards them. His walking was very profound as with each step he advanced by multiple meters at a time. In the blink of an eye he was right beside Ming Xu.

    He took another sip and then spoke out in a deep brooding voice. ¡°Kids, you all sure are strong these days. To think your battle prowess would be this astonishing at such a young age. Of course that sparring session got a bit out of hand just now. If I hadn¡¯t have stepped in, not to mention the people with lower cultivation bases, even you kids would have been seriously injured if not killed.

    And to top it all off you three were the main contributors.¡± Fourth Elder turned to face Akata, then Ming Lu, and finally Xiun Wu. He gave each of them a look and then addressed the crowd as a whole. ¡°As of right now this challenge is over. Akata has beaten Ming Xu and is now the Seventh Ranked cultivator of the sect. You four come with me.¡± Fourth Elder waved his sleeve where Ming Xu, Ming Lu, Xiun Wu, and Akata were swept up. ¡°The match is over, why are you all still here?¡± He took another sip of wine and started to walk off.

    ¡°Umm¡­ Fourth Elder? Why didn¡¯t you take me with them?¡± Xi Fe asked courteously.

    Fourth Elder turned to look at Xi Fe and after a moment he laughed out loud. ¡°Hahaha for what kid? Did you do something? From what I saw, you just stood there behind that Xiun Wu trying not to get hit. That hardly counts as doing something. From my perspective you aren¡¯t involved at all.¡± He took another sip of alcohol and turned back around to leave.

    Xi Fe was left standing there. He didn¡¯t know what to do right now. He couldn¡¯t face Fourth Elder so he could only stand there for a moment. After a bit of time he clenched his teeth and turned to go to the Fifth Cabin.

    After a bit of strolling through the sect and making a visit to refill his flagon of alcohol, Fourth Elder made his way to Red Cloud Hall. He walked right in drinking from his flagon. The Sect Leader and Third Elder were inside of the hall and watched as Fourth Elder waltz in.

    Third Elder shook his head while the Sect Leader looked at him calmly. Fourth Elder swished his sleeve and sent out the kids. Xiun Wu, Ming Lu, Ming Xu, and Akata landed on the ground in front of Fourth Elder. They looked around until they noticed the Sect Leader there.

    ¡°You all caused quite the commotion just now and put many people in danger. I want to know the reason why.¡± She looked out calmly at the group and then pointed. ¡°Xiun Wu you¡¯re up first.¡±

    ¡°Sect Leader the reason for all this-¡± A snort could be heard from the Sect Leader as she stopped Xiun Wu mid sentence.

    If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.

    ¡°If you remember correctly I said I wanted to ¡®know¡¯ why. I didn¡¯t say I wanted to ¡®hear¡¯ why. Obviously I don¡¯t intent to listen to all of your biased perspectives.¡± With that she swished her sleeve and Xiun Wu started to glow with a blue light. The light quickly converged on his head and then flew to the Sect Leader.

    After a brief amount of time she nodded her head and then swished her sleeve again toward Ming Lu, and then to Ming Xu, and once more towards Akata. The same thing happened to each of them. A blue light surrounded them and converged on their heads and then flew back to her.

    The whole process happened rather quickly. The four of them didn¡¯t even feel anything weird happen to them. Not even a tingling sensation could be felt in their bodies all they saw was a blue light surround them and it fly back to the Sect Leader.

    After a bit of thought the Sect Leader nodded her head and stood up. ¡°After reviewing your memories I have come up with some consequences for you all. Each consequence of mine is to be taken into effect immediately.¡± She looked out at the four of them standing there.

    She turned her attention to Ming Lu first. ¡°Ming Lu, for you to start the brawl and cause so many casualties amongst the sect, you are hereby banished from the Red Cloud Sect.¡± The Sect Leader swished her sleeve and instantly Ming Lu disappeared.

    Ming Xu¡¯s eyes went wide and before she could even speak the Sect Leader addressed her. ¡°Ming Xu, you are targeted by certain people in the sect as of this moment so it will not be safe for you to stay here, therefore you are also banished from the sect.¡± She swished her sleeve again and Ming Xu also disappeared in an instant.

    Xiun Wu had a fearful look on his face. He didn¡¯t know if banishment meant being thrown out of the sect or being killed in body and spirit. It all happened so fast that he couldn¡¯t tell which happened. His heart skipped a beat when he noticed the Sect Leader turning her head to look at him now.

    Before he could even cry out and beg for forgiveness her words rang out. ¡°Xiun Wu, you have caused much trouble and death within and out of the sect. You had organized assassins to kill Akata but instead managed to heavily injure Peizhi Xiuying to the point of her almost dying. You attempted to kill Ming Xu, and had also ordered her to kill Akata. If I add up all the people who you order to kill Akata it would amount to 23. Now tell me what should your punishment be? Banishment also?¡±

    When Xiun Wu heard the word banishment his body froze in fear. No longer concerned over his dignity he got on his knees and pleaded for mercy. ¡°Please I beg of you spare me. My family can get you anything you want. I was raised in a prestigious household filled with royalty. I can provide resources and money and cultivation techniques to you or the sect. Just please spare me!¡±

    Xiun Wu gave no effort to conceal his wish for living. Nothing else mattered but his life at the moment. He would disgrace his family name in order to continue living.

    The Sect Leader gave a cold snort at the way Xiun Wu was acting. It was utterly disgraceful. Third Elder was displeased as well as he watched Xiun Wu. Fourth Elder on the other hand laughed out loud, spitting out the alcohol he had in his mouth.

    ¡°Bwahaha! Spoiled rich kids have no backbone at all! No pride at all! When it comes to their lives they just cower and beg for it, trying to bribe others with pleasantries in order to save themselves. I¡¯ll let you know now kid, if someone wanted your life just because, you won¡¯t be able to save yourself with treasures or your background.¡± Fourth Elder took another sip of alcohol and continued to laugh afterwards.

    Xiun Wu heard this but he didn¡¯t care in the least. He just wanted to preserve his life at the moment.

    The Sect Leader gave a long look at Xiun Wu and then spoke out. ¡°Xiun Wu, I have decided that you will also be banished from the sect.¡±

    Before his heart could drop, the Sect Leader swished her sleeve and Xiun Wu disappeared. When he reappeared he was extremely shocked to see where he was.

    He stood in front of a giant gate. The gate had five imposing words on it which read, Holy Water Merchant House Sect.

    ¡°I¡¯m¡­ home?¡± He looked around and found a bag next to his body. He went to the bag and looked inside where he found all the stuff he had taken to and gotten from Red Cloud Sect. The bag was one of those special bags of holding which could hold many things inside of it.

    ¡°So being banished is actually being kicked out of the sect? That¡¯s a relief.¡± Xiun Wu let out a deep sigh of relief. He strode forth toward the gate until he was right in front of it.

    ¡°Who goes there?!¡± The guards standing at the gate bellowed out as they saw a figure approach. When the figure didn¡¯t stop walking forward the second guard yelled out, ¡°Stop now or we¡¯ll attack you soon.¡±

    After those words the figure stopped and snorted. ¡°How dare you talk to me in that way! Mere people such as you don¡¯t even qualify to stand in front of a gate. Call my father this instant and tell him I have returned home with news.¡± Xiun Wu yelled out.

    The guards instantly filled with an intense sensation of fear. Xiun Wu was a terrifying figure in the Holy Water Merchant House Sect as he held a high position. And yet he wasn¡¯t exactly a lenient figure.

    ¡°Ah! Yes Young Master Xiun Wu. Right away, sorry we didn¡¯t recognize you earlier. It won¡¯t happen again.¡± One of the guards waved his sleeve as a jade slip appeared in his hand. He quickly wrote something on it and then sent it flying inside of the sect.

    Xiun Wu didn¡¯t go inside of the sect gate yet but stood outside and waited. After a bit of time a carriage came through the gates from inside the sect. It wasn¡¯t being pulled by anything and in fact was hovering off the ground as it moved. The carriage was white and had gold trimmings around it.

    It stopped in front of Xiun Wu and out stepped a person with white robes. He was a middle aged man and had a black beard. He gave Xiun Wu a slight bow at the waist. ¡°Welcome back Young Master Xiun Wu. I hope your travels were easy going. Please step inside.¡± Xiun Wu stepped into the carriage and the man climbed in as well.

    The carriage began to move and was soon on the other side of the gate. Xiun Wu looked at the middle aged man and then spoke calmly. ¡°Elder Hong Tian I think we need new guards at the gate.¡± His face was blank as he spoke. The Elder nodded and then waved his finger.

    The guards released a sigh of relief as they watched the carriage go by. Sweat even dripped from their foreheads. ¡°It looks like he forgot about us hehe.¡± One guard laughed off nervously. As the words left his mouth two regular sized golden raindrops fell from the sky. They couldn¡¯t detect it and as soon as the raindrop fell onto their heads, their bodies turned into a golden puddle and then evaporated into the sky above.

 Chapter 40: Akataâ€™s Punishment

    Ming Lu appeared in front of a huge area that was covered with buildings and shops and everything else in between. She looked around and immediately knew where she was. ¡°I¡¯m back in the Holy Beast Kingdom?¡± She was at a loss and before she could begin walking Ming Xu appeared right next to her.

    ¡°Eh?¡± Ming Xu instantly saw Ming Lu and was confused, but then tears formed within her eyes as she ran to her gave her a big hug. ¡°I¡¯m so sorry sis! I should have listened to you since the beginning, because of me we have gotten banished from the sect. It¡¯s all my fault!¡± Tears streamed down her face as she cried out.

    Ming Lu held tightly and embraced her. She held Ming Xu in her arms and allowed her to cry into her chest. ¡°It¡¯s okay Little Xu Xu I forgive you. It¡¯s my fault as well but we¡¯ll discuss this at a later time. For now let¡¯s report back to the clan.¡±

    As Ming Lu spoke she looked off at the gate in front of her and saw the words on top. ¡®Ming Clan¡¯ The gate opened up and out walked a man wearing a black robe. He was followed by six other people who walked behind him but kept up with his pace.

    ¡°Princess Ming Lu and Princess Ming Xu welcome home. It¡¯s quite a surprise to see you here so sudden and without warning. Why is that?¡± The man spoke in a clear light voice. His hands were behind his back and he looked like a transcendent being.

    ¡°Elder Ming Gonggong, matters had abruptly came up within Red Cloud Sect and were forced to come here earlier than expected. We would like to talk more inside with our father first before going into detail.¡± Ming Lu put on the air of a princess and spoke with royal manners.

    ¡°Very well then. Allow for us to guide you then.¡± With that the man led Ming Xu and Ming Lu back into the clan.

    Red Cloud Hall

    Akata stood there looking at the Sect Leader banish person after person. He was calm the whole time and his face was blank. He wasn¡¯t the least bit worried about the Sect Leader killing Ming Lu or Ming Xu. He wanted Xiun Wu dead but he knew it wouldn¡¯t happen.

    But what really shocked Akata was what the Sect Leader said to Xiun Wu. ¡°What do you mean by ¡®heavily injuring¡¯ Peizhi Xiuying? She was dead when I carried her all the way over here. I know I wasn¡¯t mistaken.¡± He yelled out.

    ¡°Oh? So you¡¯re doubting what I say now? Is that defiance against the sect? Are you trying to get banished along with the others as well?¡± the Sect Leader retorted.

    ¡°Sect Leader Fu it would be nice of you to tell me about Peizhi Xiuying.¡± Akata didn¡¯t want to get off track and instead brought the conversation back on topic.

    The Sect Leader looked closely at Akata and didn¡¯t speak further. Third Elder who hadn¡¯t said anything this whole time spoke up instead. ¡°Peizhi Xiuying was indeed heavily injured to the point of being on the edge of dying, but she hadn¡¯t died. Right now she is recuperating at the Medicine Pavilion, once she is back in shape she will be taken back to her clan.¡±

    Akata was surprised as his eyes went wide. His breathing became haggard and his heart sped up. He just couldn¡¯t believe what he was hearing at the moment. He immediately turned around as he was going to run to the Medicine Pavilion.

    However, before he could take two steps a voice resounded right next to his ear. ¡°Where do you think you are going?¡± Akata came to a halt and looked behind him. The Sect Leader was standing less than a meter away from him at this time.

    She spoke again. ¡°Do you think you¡¯re getting off for free without any consequences yourself? Humph, as if. Akata, for almost killing multiple disciples around the Seventh Arena, you will be locked away for two months by yourself.¡± With that she swished her sleeve and Akata disappeared.

    Akata reappeared in a forest surrounded by trees and vegetation. He sniffed the air and could smell the seawater around. ¡°What is this place? It doesn¡¯t look like a prison.¡±Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.

    ¡°That¡¯s because it isn¡¯t.¡± A voice resounded. A man in brown furs appeared and as soon as he did he took a sip from his alcohol flagon. Akata looked over at him.

    ¡°You will be locked up on this small island for two months. Nobody will be here to help as you will only have yourself, that is your punishment. You have to survive on your own out here so don¡¯t end up dying.

    ¡°Your best chance of survival would be to gain enlightenment and comprehend the various techniques you have acquired. You should also get accustomed to your weapon as fast as you can. Probably carrying it with you at all times no matter what you¡¯re doing or where you are would suffice.¡±

    Akata nodded his head in understanding.

    ¡°Be careful as you have to find food out here by yourself. Don¡¯t starve to death.

    It was true, some cultivators could spend months in meditation comprehending items, even spending years at a time. If Akata got lost in meditation and found himself starving it would be truly bad.

    Fourth Elder turned around to take his leave. Soon Akata was the only one on the small island..

    He looked around and saw his bag of holding beside him. He looked inside where he saw his scythe and grabbed it, then he sat down cross legged. The second thing he pulled out was the World Omen of Lord Dullahan technique. If he was going to carry this scythe with him at all times he might as well learn about it first.

    This was going to be his first time looking through the scythe part of this technique. He took a deep breath. He flipped to the first page where the introduction was and began reading.

    To many people death is the end of everything. No matter how long you live, whether it be decades, centuries, or millenniums, or even if you have eternal life, death will still follow. I have ruled countless worlds and battled an even more astonishing amount of people. I have killed countless beings and brought an end to their lives. Death was the only thing that laid in my path. My blades and whips have brought along carnage and blood and tears wherever they passed through.

    Yet with all this death people still live. They live to fight death, and as I live on, i find that I am also doing the same. In my last bid to cheat death I gained enlightenment towards it. Only by truly understanding what death is can one transcend it. I have overcome the death tribulation and shall now leave this plane.

    As a testament to my struggles I shall leave my will to those below me in order to spread my teachings. Only those who truly want to understand pain, suffering, loss, and death shall understand my intentions. If one day you are able to understand death seek me out, for I will pass down my personal secrets onto you.

    Akata read the introduction and felt that it held many secrets within it. Maybe his cultivation base wasn¡¯t high enough or maybe he just didn¡¯t understand. Yet because of that he wanted to understand more. He wanted to increase his cultivation so that he will be able to see those secrets. At first he was a little bit wary of actually training in this technique but after reading this he had no more qualms about it.

    ¡°If I am to become stronger then I must learn all that I can. Only by understanding the things most don¡¯t understand will I be able to stand above the rest.¡± Akata¡¯s eyes showed with a clear light as he went back to reading the technique.

    ¡°This book is divided into sections based on the weapon one chooses to use. The section for the scythe is all the way in the back of the book.¡± Akata flipped the pages until he got to the back of the book. As he got there he made an, ¡°Eee?¡± sound and focused intently on the book.

    ¡°There¡¯s only a single page for the scythe? And the whole page isn¡¯t even filled up.¡± Akata was confused and thought something was wrong so he flipped the page only to find that nothing was ripped out. It was really the last page in the book. He flipped back to read what was on the page.

    The scythe is the true weapon of death. It is the weapon of choice by the demon Death himself. Although it is a simple weapon the secrets it holds are unfathomable. Not even I have found all the secrets to it. But the secrets I have found are too profound to write with words. My full intent cannot be shown with a simple stroke from ink. To express my knowledge on scythes I must deliver to you my intent personally. Yet this intent cannot be given to just anybody, only those who have devoted themselves to the scythe may receive my intent and will.

    Akata¡¯s breathing sped up as he read the words left behind by Lord Dullahan. Even though this was a copy of the simplified version of his true work, it still held a powerful intent that caused Akata¡¯s cultivation base to stir.

    Akata didn¡¯t know how to prove that he was devoted to the scythe, but he unconsciously gripped onto the scythe that was in his lap. When he did that his red rune started rotating in his soul region. It spun around faster and faster, faster than it had ever gone before. A glow spread out across Akata¡¯s body and even the scythe. Amidst the glow a red mark appeared on the handle of the scythe. The mark actually resembled Akata¡¯s red rune.

    When the glow spread to the scythe Akata finally noticed it and he was surprised. But he didn¡¯t resist it because he felt like he was becoming one with it. He closed his eyes and felt for the scythe.

    He felt the scythe¡¯s intent and its will to go out into the world again. Akata felt that the scythe wasn¡¯t a weapon used to cause death wherever it went, but was a tool meant to guide the soul of the being to the next life.

    The scythe seemed to also feel Akata¡¯s feelings and intent and also resonated with it. He felt the desire to become the strongest and the fighting will that came from Akata. The resonance between the two caused the scythe to be branded with the symbol of the red rune.

    All of a sudden the World Omen of Lord Dullahan started glowing with a black aura. The book started floating in midair in front of Akata and a voice entered his mind.

    ¡°The path you tread is one of death. The scythe is your path to power. The will of the scythe resonates within you, now you shall receive my intent and knowledge as well.¡±

    A flood of information entered Akata¡¯s mind as Lord Dullahan¡¯s intent poured into his mind. Although it was a simplified version of the technique and the intent being transmitted into his mind was also simplified. The sheer amount and the profoundness of it surpassed anything Akata knew. The intent was causing him to blackout and he bit his tongue to stay conscious. If it wasn¡¯t for his strong mental energy he would have already passed out.

 Chapter 41: Intent of Lord Dullahan

    Beads of sweat formed on Akata¡¯s body causing his robe to be soaked. The World Omen of Lord Dullahan contained too much information, which all poured into his mind. And the intent was too great for Akata¡¯s weak cultivation base, filling it up to the point of it overflooding. His vision darkened and his body was trembling all over, but he held on and grit his teeth.

    Blood oozed from Akata¡¯s eyes, ears, nose, and mouth. The intent washed over his whole body, remolding it in a way. This was something most techniques wouldn¡¯t do, only truly powerful techniques would attempt this. Yet, this was only a copy of a simplified version. It wasn¡¯t even the whole complete thing yet it was so powerful!

    Akata¡¯s body was trembling and started to glow with a black light. The black glow spread all over his body with a prickling sensation. It was slightly painful but Akata could bear it easily. The weird part was that the glow only seemed to cover his skin, and as it did his skin turned black.

    But then the glow spread deeper into his body to reach his muscles. The pain increased dramatically and Akata¡¯s muscles convulsed greatly. His face distorted from the sudden increase in pain but he didn¡¯t make a sound and clenched his teeth together. It felt like his muscles and skin were constantly tearing apart yet being rebuilt at the same time. It was a horrifying feeling of constant pain.

    If it stopped there then Akata could deal with it but then the glow went deeper into his body to reach his organs. His heart, his lungs, his brain, all of that was being covered in the black glow and was experiencing an unbearable stabbing pain.

    Akata finally let out a long blood curdling howl as this new wave of pain came. ¡°AAAHHHH!!¡± His organs were being completely crushed, his muscles were constantly being torn apart, and his skin was slowly eroding away with a stabbing sensation. Yet all of that repeated because even as they were feeling that they would quickly recover and begin the cycle again.

    The black glow was mysterious as it even spread to Akata''s mind and corroded his mental energy. His mental energy crashed as the black glow battered against it. It was a horrendous stabbing pain. Yet the glow didn''t stop at mental energy as it attacked his nature energy and another type of energy Akata ducky know anything about. All of that was attacked and experienced a stabbing sensation causing great pain to Akata''s mind.

    It made for a terrifying level of pain that one wouldn¡¯t willingly go through no matter what. But even still it didn¡¯t stop there, that was because the black glow started to cover over Akata¡¯s soul and cultivation region. The glow battered against the two spaces and soon overpowered the two. It flooded in with a feeling of extermination and also rebirth.

    The level of pain jumped to new heights as Akata¡¯s soul and cultivation region was washed over. Everything inside of his cultivation region was destroyed and reformed completely over and over again. His meridians which serve to move the energy of the body were torn, destroyed, and crushed repeatedly until they regrew where the process would start again. Each time they grew back they would be a bit bigger. His cultivation base was burning and was being stabbed countless amounts of time strengthening it up.

    In the soul region the black glow spread far and wide. It attacked the soul until the all white soul was now pitch black. It caused Akata¡¯s body to wither greatly to the point he looked just like bones. His whole body was on fire from his organs, to his muscles, to his skin, everything was on fire yet it was being remade and quickly recovered only to be destroyed again.

    The black glow spread out further until it reached the runes in his soul region. The black glow inundated them but the red rune spun around and pushed it back with no problem. The pushing force was so great the black glow couldn¡¯t even touch the gold rune.

    After the black glow stopped attempting to try and spread into the runes, the pain in Akata¡¯s body slowly decreased. Akata¡¯s bony body was trembling from the pain, cracks could be seen on his bones and parts of him was still dark in color. Akata¡¯s figure was completely skeletal-like.If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

    As the last bit of the black glow faded away a boom could be heard from Akata¡¯s skeletal body. All of a sudden a huge black light shone around him and brought an intense suction force with it. The whole area seemed moved by it as life from all the surrounding things moved towards it. The life energy of the air, water, trees, grass, and everything moved in the direction of Akata and infused within him.

    His bones quickly healed up, his muscles formed back onto them, and his skin was repaired lightning fast. But even after his body was completely healed up the life energy didn¡¯t stop. It kept sucking in more and filled up his cultivation and soul region. His soul was pitch black once the life energy started to fill it up the soul grew in size.

    The soul kept on growing and growing until it was two times its original size. Then the blackness shed off of it revealing a lustrous white glow. The runes also received life energy which caused them to rotate and glow even more exuberant than before.

    His whole body grew to a new level of strength. His soul, his cultivation, his mind, all of that leapt by leaps and bounds to a whole different stage.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t think this technique would be so painful. But with great power there has to be consequences one has to go through. Now that I''ve gone through all of that my body feels like it''s on a completely different level than before.¡±

    ¡°This technique is way too profound, I can¡¯t even fathom how much it is going to benefit me. This technique didn''t just transfer knowledge about the scythe to me, but also morphed my body to be the perfect tool to using it. I can''t even begin to think how this will help me.

    My cultivation is at the 4th Grade now and my body should be close to the 6th Grade. My mental energy has increased to a terrifying degree and my nature energy can spread out to 50 meters with ease.

    My meridians are twice as big now which will let me cultivate faster. Not only that but my runes seem to have flourished as well.

    My soul¡­¡± Akata studied his soul for a moment before sighing in amazement. ¡°It''s twice as big now, I don''t know what that can do for me but it feels stronger as well.¡±

    Akata sat for a while to recover some of his mental energy, in his lap the scythe was still there. His physical energy was fully recovered thanks to the life energy, only his mental energy was used up greatly since the life energy couldn''t replenish that.

    Right now he wanted to practice his scythe arts. After sitting for a bit of time and recovering he opened his eyes and jumped up, scythe in hand. He looked out across the land.

    It looks barren and dead due to all the life energy that had been consumed by Akata. Withered plants littered the ground, the earth was cracked, and water was displaced. The whole area looked ravaged.

    ¡°Hard to believe that I caused all of this. It''s a good thing this is a barren island at least otherwise people could have been seriously hurt.¡± Akata took a deep breath. ¡°Well since I''m stuck here for two months I might as well train.¡±

    Akata stood tall, scythe in hand, and took a deep breath. He held the scythe in one hand and started to spin it around. He grabbed it in two hands and held it aloft in the air. He swung it downwards and the wind parted ways for it. The way he wielded it made it seem like the nothing obstructed his swings. The wind moved alongside the blade making his movements look fluid and smooth.

    ¡°It¡¯s not as forceful as a sword and not as flexible as a spear, but it seems to bring the best of both of them. The way of the scythe is meant to expel the energy of the world. The energy of life, the energy of wind, the energy of blood, it takes that energy and forces its way through it, to make sure that it doesn¡¯t impede me. The scythe allows me to cut through anything that I don¡¯t see fit to be in this plane of existence, whether that be the body, soul, or mind, all of it can be cut through.¡± Akata, as he harnessed the scythe, felt as though the scythe couldn¡¯t be stopped as it swung.

    ¡°This is a weapon that is on a different plane of existence. It is way more profound than any other.¡± As he swung the scythe around he felt that it contained many mysteries hidden within it. ¡°No wonder Lord Dullahan¡¯s intent was so profound and great. And that intent was simplified, I definitely have to find the complete version of this technique.¡± Akata couldn¡¯t help but be amazed by the scythe and Lord Dullahan.

    After a few hours of familiarizing himself with the scythe he sat back down and laid the scythe on his lap. He didn¡¯t go to his other techniques but picked up the World Omen of Lord Dullahan and began reading more of it.

    ¡°There are still some fighting techniques that I can use in here. It would be a waste not to look into it and use them for my use. Even though most of these are meant to be used in assassination, I¡¯m sure there are some skills that can be used in a frontal battle.¡± He flipped through the pages, stopping periodically to comprehend some of the skills in it.

    After a while Akata was midway through his reading of the book. He let out a long sigh, ¡°There¡¯s so much in here. Just off of this alone I feel that I can hold my own against anyone. Yet these aren''t nowhere near the level of the scythe skill. These alone aren¡¯t going to increase my cultivation base any further. I need to finish comprehending all these techniques in order to fully train.¡± Akata¡¯s eyes glowed with determination and he went to the next skill.

 Chapter 42: Cultivating Demonic Hellfire

    After finishing up the World Omen of Lord Dullahan Akata went to comprehend the Searing Heat of the Underworld. He got this technique from the Hellhound¡¯s blood he had absorbed in that mysterious place Second Elder put him in. Since he got it from the absorbed blood, the technique would forever be with him and he would never have to worry about forgetting it because it was flowing through his veins.

    It was a technique that enabled one to cultivate true hellfire. True hellfire was one of the great fires of the heavens. There were many types of hellfire that could be cultivated, however true hellfire was the greatest of them all, as it contained heavenly daos mixed in it. Hellfire was mainly used by demonic beings in the underworld and was extremely painful to people. It could even burn the soul of the person directly when cultivated to a high degree.

    ¡°Cultivating true hellfire is extremely dangerous, if I do this wrong I could burn my own soul. But it will be a great asset for me if I can use it in battle. Not many people in the Mortal Rank can use heavenly elements, let alone get their hands on techniques to cultivate it.¡± Akata saw this as a good opportunity to increase his strength.

    ¡°First thing that I must do is to summon true hellfire. Since true hellfire comes from the Underworld, in order to access it in this world I have to summon it here. There are many ways to get true hellfire. One is to travel to the Underworld which with my cultivation base is impossible. The other is to be cast to the Underworld and absorb it into your soul while there, then when resurrected you would have to reach a high cultivation base and regain your memories from your last life and cultivate your inner true hellfire. Or I can have somebody who already possesses true hellfire to summon it for me to cultivate, but I don¡¯t know anybody who has it.¡±

    ¡°None of those work for me, but luckily there is another way. Turn regular fire into demonic hellfire and throughout my life slowly absorb the heavenly daos to turn it into true hellfire. Though it will take a while to acquire true hellfire, I will have demonic hellfire which is still stronger than regular fire.¡±

    Akata wasn¡¯t depressed about the fact he couldn¡¯t cultivate true hellfire as soon as he can, that was because true hellfire caused the person to go through their inner demons. Because Akata didn¡¯t have many inner demons that would mean his true hellfire wouldn¡¯t be strong at all. If he had actually attained true hellfire now and cultivated it then it would have just a bit more strength than demonic hellfire.

    ¡°To get true hellfire I would have to make it from demonic hellfire. To make demonic fire is actually easy for me right now. To create demonic hellfire I just have to use demon blood to taint regular fire and give it a demonic aura. It¡¯s a good thing that Hellhound was a demonic beast. Even though it wasn¡¯t fully a demon it should be usable.¡±

    Akata stood up from his meditative position. He then set up a fire in the area and watched it for a while. ¡°I don¡¯t know how much fire I will need to make demonic fire so I should make this bigger.¡± As of the moment the fire he set up was only a meter tall. He added more wood to the fire and sought to make it grow. Soon the fire blazed about five meters tall. ¡°This should be enough.¡±

    Akata stood in front of the conflagration and lifted his hand in front of it. His palm faced the fire and a drop of blood came out. This was some of the Hellhound¡¯s blood that he had absorbed. The drop of blood flew out and hovered in front of Akata as he drew an incantation in the air. The drop of blood started glowing with a red-black light and flew straight to the fire. The fire burst and grew another meter and adapted red-black flames.

    The heat of the flames grew way more intense and the sparks flew off much more sporadically. The flame took on a more sinister aura and the pressure in the area made the air become stifling. Akata took a deep breath and made another incantation gesture. The fire started to condense on itself and shrink down. The smaller it got, however, the more berserk it got.You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

    The flame continued to grow smaller and the air grew sinister as it did. Beads of sweat formed on Akata. Magic was never his forte and this was a strenuous task for him. He clenched his teeth and held on. After the fire stopped shrinking, Akata would throw some more wood in there to make it grow again, then flash another incantation gesture to cause it to shrink again. This would make the fire condense more demonic power to make up for the lack of purity in the blood.

    That was how Akata went about creating his demonic fire. When the flame went low he would add more wood to increase the size of it then flash an incantation gesture to condense itself. It took a whole day before the fire was a little more than a meter tall. The flames were a deep dark red with black sparks flying off sometimes. The heat and pressure was so intense that when Akata tried to put more wood into it the wood was crushed before it got there and then burned into nothingness. Akata was extremely surprised by this.

    He was laying front of the fire yet the pressure and heat didn¡¯t affect him as much, even though he hadn¡¯t cultivated it yet. ¡°It must be because some of my blood was mixed with the demon beast which is why it feels so familiar to me. Well anyways I finally have it so it is time to cultivate it.¡±

    Akata sat up and looked directly at the fire. He then closed his eyes and started to meditate. When it came to meditating and connecting with nature, you could say no disciple in the sect could beat him. In fact only the top four Elders and the Sect Leader were better than him. So when he started meditating on the fire he found it very easy to do.

    ¡°This fire is my own since it is made of my blood. When it comes time to use the heavenly daos I learn and change this fire into true hellfire it will be extremely close to me and powerful. In fact it will be a new type of hellfire.¡± Akata eyes glistened with anticipation.

    After meditating on the fire to become accustomed to it he began to flash an incantation gesture in the air. ¡°Time to absorb it. I have to make sure this doesn¡¯t burn my soul.¡± To cultivate an element one had to fully absorb it. To do that it had to first enter and nourish the body and then the soul, and finally enter and settle down in the dantion region.

    The first part was dangerous but didn¡¯t cause any serious lasting damage if anything went wrong. It was the second part that was the most dangerous of the absorption process. Of course it varied depending on the element being absorbed. Since Akata was absorbing fire then his soul had the chance of being burned. If the soul was burned then that could not be repaired. But if you passed all that then the final part was a walk in the part, all that had to be done was settle the element in the dantion region.

    ¡°Time to start.¡± Akata finished the incantation gesture and opened his mouth. A piece of demonic hellfire flew into his mouth and a warm sensation went through him. The demonic hellfire went through his whole body but since his own blood was used to make it, no damage was done. ¡°Time to move on to the soul region.¡±

    The flame moved through his body and closed in on his soul region. As it approached a scorching sensation could be felt. Akata sensed this and tried to slow it down. The flame closed in on his soul and Akata could feel it about to burst into flames. ¡°Control it. CONTROL IT!¡± Sweat started to pour from his body and his robe became drenched.

    The demonic hellfire was sinister, even though it had a piece of Akata¡¯s blood, it continued to burn vigorously. Soon it entered his soul region and made its way to his soul. Akata felt as if his life energy was about to burn up. His eyes became bloodshot and he flashed an incantation gesture as he tried to control the demonic hellfire.

    Akata let out a roar but it didn¡¯t stop anything. The area around his soul was encased in flames and it was moving closer. Akata felt a sense of great danger as his soul region burst into flames. ¡°Arghh!¡± Akata let out a cry and spat out a mouthful of blood. The pain was tremendous and he felt his whole body about to burst into flames.

    ¡°Argh!¡± Akata let out another cry and spat out a mouthful of blood. His whole body felt like it was on fire. The intense heat caused his body to form cracks and his blood to boil. His eyes were bloodshot and his robe was soaked with sweat.

    The demonic hellfire covered his soul region and was moving closer to his soul. It passed through his soul region and started to burn his gold rune. The rune started flickering and looked as if it might fall apart.

    The flames made their way to his red rune where it too lit on fire. The red rune started flickering also and was fading away. It did nothing to stop the flames from advancing to the soul.

    ¡°This will not burn my soul.This flame contains my own blood, and is mine. I will control this fire, it doesn¡¯t matter if it¡¯s demonic fire or even true hellfire, I WILL control this!¡± Akata closed his eyes and forcefully went into a meditative state.

 Chapter 43: Eternal Hellfire

    He sent his nature sense into his body and used it to cover over the fire. He increased the pressure around the hellfire to combat it. ¡®If this hellfire thinks it can beat me then I guess I have to show it who¡¯s boss.¡¯ The nature sense Akata sent out crushed towards the hellfire. Ever since he comprehended the World Omen of Lord Dullahan and his body was reformed, his nature energy and sense greatly improved.

    His energy surrounded the hellfire and wrapped around it causing it to stop advancing. He then used his energy to surround and protect the runes in his soul region. The hellfire stopped consuming them and they immediately stopped fading away.

    Akata started rotating both runes at a fast rate and his body started glowing with a golden red light. He opened his eyes and they flashed with a tint of red and gold. ¡°My nature sense has surrounded the hellfire, now it won¡¯t run amok. I can forcefully lead it to my soul to nourish it.¡±

    Akata moved his nature energy to his soul along with his demonic hellfire. The process was smooth and the nature energy caused the hellfire to lose its burning sensation and become soothing. He guided it to his soul and began to nourish it.

    ¡°Done. Time to settle it down in my dantion region.¡± Akata then guided the hellfire to his dantion region and kept it there. ¡°I¡¯ll keep some of my nature energy wrapped around it for now.¡± He was calm now as his nature energy called for it.

    Akata didn¡¯t stop there as he sucked in some more of the demonic flame and used his nature energy to guide it throughout his body. He only used his nature energy to guide it through his soul region and to his dantion where he added it to the existing demonic flame. He then condensed it together.

    He repeated this process to cultivate the demonic hellfire. As he did the fire in front of him shrunk and shrunk.

    5 meters. 3 meters. 1 meter.

    Soon Akata sucked in the last of the ball of demonic hellfire and guided it into his body. It first nourished the body and made it stronger. By now Akata¡¯s body was extremely powerful on its own. He could fight cultivators at the 6th Grade of the Mortal Rank with just his body alone. A single fist from him could instantly beat a cultivator at the 4th Grade of the Mortal Rank.

    The demonic hellfire then passed through his soul region unto his soul. It nourished his two runes and his soul. The two runes were shining brighter than ever and they emitted a blazing aura themselves.

    Akata¡¯s soul was stronger as well. In his soul region there sat a small transparent figure with its legs crossed. The figure resembled Akata exactly, that was because it was his own soul. The two runes rotated around this figure providing it with power and the feeling of ancientness. Not only that but inside of the figure could be seen a spark of demonic hellfire. This spark was very special in that it would provide Akata with a way to produce his own demonic flames.

    In truth, cultivating an element by absorbing it would only cause it to be temporarily usable. The absorbed element would be continuously used up and would eventually run out. Which is why most people use it sparingly. For those that don¡¯t use it sparingly is because they either have a means of replenishing their supply or they plan on cultivating in a different element.

    It must be known that any absorbed element would usually only reside in the cultivation region. Yet the demonic hellfire actually had a piece of it located in Akata¡¯s very own soul. There was a reason for this however. Not only did the demonic hellfire contain a piece of Akata¡¯s own blood, which made it extremely close to him, but he was personally guiding the energy throughout his body. This made sure that he could nourish his body on a completely new level, one in which his body was almost completely immune to fire.

    Of course Akata had been noticed this which is why he had continued in this manner for so long. He wanted to thoroughly enhance himself on a fundamental level. The World Omen of Lord Dullahan had provided a great foundation for Akata and the Searing Heat of the Underworld provided immunity to fire and the ability to wield it.

    ¡°Almost done with cultivating this fire. Just a bit more and I¡¯ll be done.¡± Akata continued to guide the demonic hellfire through his body. After he finished nourishing his soul, the spark in it grew more pronounced. ¡°This spark should allow me to create my own demonic hellfire. This means that this is truly my own kind of hellfire. Once I absorb the energy of heaven and imbue it into my flame it will be a top-class fire. It should even be equivalent to true hellfire.¡± Akata mused silently to himself as he thought about the possibility of wielding such a strong fire.If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

    The last of the demonic hellfire continued on through his body, making its way to his dantion region. The dantion region was the place where the cultivation base was located. It was the most important place for a cultivator, as without it, you couldn¡¯t be a cultivator.

    The heat from the fire was gentle and caused his dantion region to warm up. The feeling caused Akata to let out a soft breath. The warm sensation spread throughout the dantion region, encasing the region in fire, yet it wasn¡¯t burning it. Akata¡¯s cultivation base started to be infected by the hellfire and increased at a slow speed.

    The last of the demonic hellfire grouped together with the other hellfire that Akata had already absorbed. The condensed energy emitted a powerful pressure. When the last bit of hellfire combined with it it became even more astonishing.

    The hellfire was settled in Akata¡¯s dantion region where it would burn forever due to Akata¡¯s demonic hellfire soul spark. As of this moment Akata had fully absorbed the demonic hellfire.

    Akata lifted his hand out in front of him with his palm facing upwards. ¡°Light.¡± Akata willed it and a small red-black flame appeared in his hand. It was about the size of a fingernail and didn¡¯t cause much pressure to form but it glittered brightly.

    Akata¡¯s eyes glowed brightly as he formed the hellfire in his hand. This was his first time ever wielding an element of nature. A wide smile appeared across his face showing all his front teeth. He pulled his arm back some and threw it forward causing the hellfire to be sent flying.

    It flew towards a bush where it immediately incinerated it. ¡°Woah. I didn¡¯t expect the burning power to be so fierce.¡± 4-5 breaths later the bush was nothing but ash. Akata looked on and the smile on his face deepened with satisfaction.

    He didn¡¯t get up immediately but instead sat there in meditation recovering his energy. Although his nature energy had increased by leaps and bounds, using it for a full day caused him to be extremely drained. He sat cross legged recovering his energy and also thinking of ways to use his demonic hellfire.

    After a few hours Akata opened his eyes and stood up to stretch. ¡°Whooo that took longer than I expected. Now I just have to cultivate the Demonic Wraith technique and I will be through.¡± This was another technique that he had gained from the Hellhound. Since it was flowing through his blood he instantly had the whole technique surface in his mind.

    ¡°So this technique is used for illusions. Interesting, with this it will greatly help my fighting. Not only that, but it will compliment my World Omen of Lord Dullahan technique as well.¡± Akata sat and studied the technique. Sometimes his mouth would gape open with surprise, ardor, or even praise. This was a technique truly fitting of him, it was just what he needed.

    It was fairly easy to learn the skills in the technique. The Demonic Wraith technique consisted of two different concepts to bring together one technique. The demonic part and the wraith part.

    The demonic part was the outer shell of the technique while the wraith was the main part. The demonic part was meant as a cover-up as to hide the wraith. It was used to show the sinisterness of the technique and have others cower in front of it.

    The wraith was the main part of the technique. It was what everything was centered around and was the focal point. The illusions of the technique stemmed from the wraith, causing them to be covered up by the demonic part.

    After about a few hours of meditating on the technique Akata let out a long breath. ¡°This technique is just too bizarre. How did that Hellhound even possess an ability like this? With these skills how could I have beaten that?¡± Akata let out a dry laugh and stood up. ¡°Well for now I¡¯m done comprehending all the techniques that I have gained.

    The Elder Quarters in a secret location

    Third and Second Elder were watching Akata train in the World Omen of Lord Dullahan technique. They were watching very closely and were monitoring everything that was happening. The room was extremely quiet.

    ¡°Why did you permit Akata to train in the World Omen of Lord Dullahan?¡± Third Elder couldn¡¯t help but break the silence and ask. Normally he wouldn¡¯t question his sister as she was very intelligent, but this time he couldn¡¯t help but ask.

    Second Elder didn¡¯t turn her head as she was still staring at the screen in front of her watching Akata. As she watched the screen she spoke in a calm, soothing voice. ¡°My answer is simple. I¡¯m curious.¡±

    ¡°Curious over what exactly?¡± Third Elder turned his head to face Second Elder and a puzzling look could be seen.

    Second Elder also turned her head to look back at him. ¡°Out of all the treasures, weapons, skills, items, in the Treasure Pavilion he chose the scythe to wield. Not just any ordinary scythe either but the Bludhaven Scythe. That scythe emits no energy whatsoever yet he was able to sense it with his nature energy. This must mean he has some sort of connection with the scythe, Also, while we do have some scythe techniques, the best one undoubtedly comes from the intent of Lord Dullahan. He didn¡¯t know that, yet he chose this technique. I¡¯m curious as to what all this will lead to.¡±

    After Second Elder spoke she turned her head to look at Akata once more. A gleam appearing in her eyes. She didn¡¯t notice it but Third Elder did. After a moment he too looked at Akata. It was at this point that Akata started to absorb the intent of Lord Dullahan.

    ¡°He did it? He actually did it?¡± It wasn¡¯t Second Elder who spoke this but Third Elder. He was surprised by the fact that Akata was so connected to the scythe. ¡°At such a young age, yet he is fully connected to the scythe. How is this even possible?¡± He unconsciously looked at Second Elder, but she didn¡¯t look away from the screen.

    Her face was calm but her eyes showed with a bright radiance. She was anticipating Akata¡¯s future. ¡°So the scythe is connected to him by destiny. Just¡­ what kind of future will he have?¡±

 Chapter 44: Beast Tabet

    A few hours later

    Akata stood in front of a tree, scythe in hand. He gripped the scythe with two hands and had his feet shoulder length apart. His breathing was calm and his eyes were focused. He sucked in a breath and swung out toward the tree.

    The scythe seemed as if it could cut through anything in its path without any problem. The air parted ways for it, seemingly not wanting to get in the way of the weapon.

    Swish!

    The tree didn¡¯t have the right to stand up to the blow of the scythe from Akata. It was cut in half cleanly without any resistance. The tree toppled over and fell to the ground with a thud.

    ¡°Hmm. My scythe arts are becoming more refined as I practice them. From what I gained from the intent of Lord Dullahan, the scythe is a weapon that is meant to sever attachments. To cut through all things. It was a weapon created for the sole purpose of separating the soul from the body.¡± Akata¡¯s mind shook from this thought. Even though he had thought about this a lot, his mind was still shocked from learning this.

    ¡°If I am to get further in my skill in the scythe, I will need to keep on practicing with it. Well can¡¯t just stand around now can I.¡± Akata chuckled and then walked in the direction of another tree.

    Boom!

    ¡°Huh? What was that?¡± Akata heard a loud boom in the distance and looked over. ¡°I thought I was alone on this island.¡±

    ¡°Who said you were alone on here? If you were alone that would hardly be counted as surviving. This is your real punishment.¡±

    ¡°Fourth Elder?¡± Akata yelled out. But there wasn¡¯t a response afterwards. ¡°So it seems that I¡¯ll have to fight to survive. Well that¡¯s good too, it will help me to get stronger, faster.¡± A smile could be seen on Akata¡¯s face as he thought about fighting others.

    Akata was a genius when it came to fighting and he loved it. If there was one thing he could do it would be to fight. However he didn¡¯t like to fight just because he was a genius, he liked to fight because it was the only thing that truly brought him feeling. Growing up in the sect where people didn¡¯t really care about him, Akata became somewhat apathetic towards most things. Fighting made his spirit rise with a feeling he couldn¡¯t explain.

    ¡°Once I¡¯m strong enough, I¡¯ll be able to blast through the cabins and finally be on my way to the outside world. After I¡¯m out of this, I should go see Peizhi Xiuying and Huihe Ji. Or maybe they¡¯ll be out by the time I¡¯m out.¡± A smile appeared on Akata¡¯s face as he thought of this.

    Boom! Boom!

    The loud booming came closer as time passed. Akata¡¯s eyes glowed with anticipation as, instead of waiting for it to come to him, he took a step forward to meet it. He was eager to test his new strength against an opponent.

    ¡°I hope this one is strong. It would be really depressing is this is just a weak beast that I can trample upon without trying.¡± He rushed forward at a fast speed. ¡°Maybe it will be at the Fourth Grade of the Docile Rank, or the Fifth, or even the-¡±

    BOOM!!

    All of a sudden a tree came out of nowhere and crashed against Akata, sending him flying away. Akata flew of into the opposite direction that he was heading. He crashed into a few trees on the way before stopping himself. Although he wasn¡¯t injured or hurt, Akata was surprised and a bit mad that a tree could send him flying like that.This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

    ¡°Who did that?!¡± Akata yelled out in the direction that the tree was sent flying from. He swept off the dust that was on his robes and activated his Shadowfeet technique. He rushed forward with speed that made him look like a flashing shadow.

    He rushed through the trees in until he saw a beast standing in front of a tree. It was looking calmly at the tree, it looked like it only had peace in its mind. Almost no aura wafted off of it.

    The beast looked like a tiger with red fur. It was about 3 meters long and had black saber teeth. Its claws were black and sharp as well, when it stood on the ground its claws dug into the ground. It had two tails that were a meter long that swung out around its body.

    Akata gave a snort. ¡°Trifling 2nd Grade Docile Rank beast.¡± Akata raised his scythe and swept it out towards the beast. ¡°This should be nice training.¡±

    The scythe flashed through the air, making it part ways. Nothing impeded its path as it rushed to the beast. The scythe had the power of separation as it closed in on the beast.

    The beast turned its head to look at the incoming scythe. Its face was still as calm as ever and its aura still didn¡¯t fluctuate. The beast slowly put up a paw to block the scythe that was heading in its direction. It opened its mouth, but instead of a roar a voice spoke out.

    ¡°Trifling 4th Grade Mortal Rank human.¡± It spoke calmly. Its voice reverberated throughout the forest and as it did everything in the area began to shake and tremble. It was as if his voice could control anything that was on the island, no¡­ anything in nature.

    Akata sensed that something was extremely wrong with this beast as his scythe approached it. ¡°You can speak?! Oh no.¡± Akata¡¯s eyes went wide with complete disbelief. Not only that but shock and fear washed over him as well. However even after all of that, nothing made him fear the beast. The scythe was too close to the beast to withdraw his attack so he tried his best to weaken it.

    Bang! The scythe hit the palm of the beast and bounced back almost as if it were a ball. The paw of the beast didn¡¯t have a scratch on it at all. No mark could be seen the paw, as it stood in the air, like it were still waiting on the scythe to make contact with it.

    The beast gave a snort before putting its paw down. ¡°You, a trifling human dare try to attack me? I can¡¯t tell if you want to die or if you are just plain stupid. Please enlighten me.¡± The beast asked in a rather curious voice.

    Akata stared wide-eyed at the beast. Even though he had tried his best to pull back the power of his scythe he could only take a bit away. About 90 percent of the strength still remained in the attack, yet it didn¡¯t cause any damage whatsoever to the beast. Akata¡¯s mouth was left hanging open as he was left stunned.

    ¡°Speak boy. Don¡¯t just stand there slack jawed.¡± The beast once more spoke out.

    ¡°Ah!¡± Only then did Akata become clear minded. ¡°Umm¡­ I just thought that I use you as a training partner. I didn¡¯t know that you were so strong.¡± Akata said sincerely while bowing. He knew that this beast in front of him was too strong for him to take on so he was respectful and courteous.

    ¡°Training partner? Hahaha! You must have thought that I was weak and were going to use me to train until you grew bored, then you were going to slay me am I right? Haha¡± The beast threw its head into the air and laughed out.

    ¡°Yes¡­¡± Akata said with his head low. He felt that one wrong word would lead to his immediate death. Right now, he was thinking of countless ways to get out of this situation alive, but none of them seemed to work. They either ended in his capture or his death.

    ¡°Humph. Well what am I going to do with you now then?¡± The beast thought for a while with its eyes closed. After a moment it opened them and spoke. ¡°How about I make you my training partner. These trees are too decrepit. You might just hold up better than them.¡± The beast''s eyes flashed with a bright light.

    Akata took in a deep gulp as sweat began to form on his forehead. He didn¡¯t know what to do right now. His breathing became haggard and his mind started to race with many thoughts. He unconsciously took a step back from where he was standing.

    ¡°Come now boy, let¡¯s begin. You better defend. Haha.¡±

    Akata turned around to see the beast behind him. The beast had appeared behind too fast for Akata to see it happen. He didn¡¯t even feel it happen at all. ¡°Just what level is this beast at? How can I defend against it?¡± Akata had worry all over his face.

    Akata immediately twirled his scythe and held it out in front of him to block the strike of the beast. He pushed his cultivation base to rotate at full strength. Along with that he rotated his red and golden runes to push his power to the next level. His nature sense was put into action to be used to defend. As of this moment Akata could unleash the strength of someone at the 6th Grade of the Mortal Rank.

    Bang!

    The casual strike of the beast blew Akata away. He flew back coughing up multiple mouthfuls of blood as he crashed through countless trees. Soon his back hit a sturdy enough rock and stopped him in place. He coughed up another large mouthful of blood that was caused from his serious injuries. His face was extremely pale and his robes were tattered and rough. His eyes and face were listless, but he was conscious.

    ¡°Ahaha! You do last longer than these decrepit trees. Well I can¡¯t just let such a great training partner go to waste! Ahaha. Good good. Well let¡¯s do this again shall we. Ah! But not so soon, how about after you recover some? I¡¯ll give you say¡­ three hours? Yes yes that¡¯s good enough. Well I¡¯ll see you in three hours then.¡±

    The beast began to walk away before stopping and saying, ¡°Oh I forgot to mention my name. I am Tabet of the Scarlet Tiger race. You¡¯re such a great training partner, I do hope I can learn your name when we next meet.¡± After that Tabet took a step and vanished.

 Chapter 45: Plant Realm Cultivation

    Akata was seated cross legged, forcefully recovering his body and energy. He had sustained severe injuries from the Scarlet Tiger named Tibet a few minutes ago, and knew that he would be back in three short hours. Akata had to fully recover by then otherwise he would be in some serious trouble.

    ¡®That dumb beast! How am I supposed to recover from these serious injuries in a mere three hours. I probably couldn¡¯t fully recover from them within two or three days. Now¡¯s not the time to think about that, I should be thinking of a way to heal faster.¡¯ Akata let out a long sigh as he continued to heal himself.

    He reached into his bag of holding and took out a medicinal pill that he had and popped it into his mouth. The pill released a soothing energy all over his body, restoring him by a large amount. ¡®These pills are useful, but I only have three of them. If that beast attacks me more than that, I will still need a way to heal without these pills.¡¯

    Akata thought and thought of many ways to recover from any future injuries he would receive from the beast. He looked through his bag of holding at the many contents that he had.

    Inside he saw medicinal pills that could be used for different things such as body enhancement, healing, cultivation, recovering energy, etc. He saw robes he had packed in there, food, water, and weapons.

    ¡®Eh?¡¯ Akata reached into the bag and took out a blood colored rose. The rose held a deep crimson color that made it look like it was completely made of blood. ¡®Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s blood lotus¡­¡¯ It was the flower he had plucked from the ground after Peizhi Xiuying had planted it in Misty Forest.

    After holding the lotus in his hand for a while, Akata¡¯s red rune started to rotate on its own. His face immediately changed as his eyes went wide with shock. ¡®Wha¡­ what is going on?! No stop STOP!¡¯

    The red rune started to release a suctioning feeling. The red lotus started to tremble as Akata held on to it. He threw it away from him, but even then it didn¡¯t stop shaking. The flower rose up into the air emitting a buzzing sound. The buzzing sound was only heard by Akata as it seemed to resonate with his red rune.

    The red rune inside of him spun around in his soul region and glowed brightly. In response the flower also did the same. A red glow emanated out of the flower as it washed over Akata. The glow seemed to baptize Akata, and his nature energy was sent to in turmoil also.

    ¡®Just what is going on? What is happening right now?¡¯ He couldn¡¯t help but think to himself.

    As the glow from the lotus spread out over Akata, his body sucked it all in, absorbing it into himself. His red rune drew in the glow and seemed to control it. It also seemed to control a bit of the nature energy within him as the energy washed over the red rune and a piece of it was absorbed also.

    ¡®This rune is taking in my nature energy? How? Why?¡¯ Akata was at a loss right now. ¡®And why is it absorbing Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s lotus?¡¯

    The lotus became lighter and lighter as the redness from it was drained into Akata¡¯s rune. The rune sucked in all the blood that was in the lotus along with some of Akata¡¯s nature energy. Once all the blood was sucked into the rune the lotus became completely white. Yet even after that, the white lotus started to sparkle with white light. White motes of light rose up from within the lotus.

    ¡®What are those? They seem soft and gentle, calm and soothing.¡¯ The motes of light then floated over to Akata¡¯s body to be absorbed into his body and into his red rune. The white motes of light seemed to nourish the red rune. ¡®What¡¯s this feeling? It¡¯s like these motes of light are completing the red rune.¡¯Stolen novel; please report.

    Soon all the motes of light were absorbed into his red rune and the white lotus had completely disappeared. Akata closed his eyes and sensed throughout his body. He could feel that his red rune was somewhat different than before. He sensed that it took on a change that felt familiar to him.

    ¡®Nature energy? It¡¯s like my red rune can control nature energy in a sense. Almost like it is apart of nature.¡¯ Akata rotated his red rune and felt a rush of nature energy burst forth. He felt a connection to nature like he had never felt before. He could sense the grass, trees, bushes, flowers, all the plants in the area, all of nature in the area.

    That wasn¡¯t all Akata felt. Inside of his body he felt something different going on. The red rune started to rotate and soon the white motes of light it had absorbed started to pour out of it. They passed through his body, from his soul region and made their way to his dantion region where his cultivation base was.

    Akata¡¯s cultivation base was just like every other mortals. It was located within his dantion region. His dantion region was like a small piece of land surrounded by a small body of water. On the small piece of land was a small figure. The small figure was glowing completely white. It was the spitting image of Akata, and was seated cross legged on the small island. Each time Akata grew in cultivation power it would grow and make a qualitative change.

    Soon the white motes of light approached the small piece of land and combined into a small sphere, almost like a seed. The seed settled into the land behind the white figure that looked like Akata. Soon the seedling sprouted a small plant that was barely visible. The small plant was completely white in color and glowed with a dim light.

    The plant brought a sense of power to Akata. It felt familiar but at the same time felt completely different to him. ¡®What is this? It feels like it¡¯s giving off a cultivation base of its own, yet it¡¯s not like what I¡¯m used to. I feel nature energy swirling all around it.¡¯

    Akata thought for a moment then came to a conclusion. ¡®A plant sprouted in my dantion region and fluctuates cultivation power. This must be the Plant Realm¡­ But how can I cultivate in the Plant Realm if I¡¯m not a plant?¡¯ Akata was extremely confused.

    ¡®I¡¯ll have to ask the Elders at the sect when¡­ if I get back. Or I can ask Peizhi Xiuying about it later. Either way I have to survive long enough to get out of here.¡¯ Akata opened his eyes and looked out at the trees ahead of him.

    ¡®I have a little more than two hours left until that beast comes back. My injuries are about healed thanks to that pill earlier. But I can¡¯t continuously use pills for two months straight. Maybe this plant cultivation base can help me out.¡¯

    After an hour and a half of meditating and recuperating Akata stood up. ¡®From what I know about immortal cultivation, you absorb the energy of heaven and earth. Would that be the same principle of plant cultivation.

    Peizhi Xiuying absorbed the blood of beasts to increase the cultivation of her Grand Life Vine. So if I can absorb the blood of beasts then I can give some to my plant cultivation and increase that¡­ This all sounds too weird.¡¯ Akata just couldn¡¯t believe what he was thinking right now. Cultivating in the Plant Realm? That sounded absurd for anybody.

    ¡®Well how should I prepare for this battle then. Well it¡¯s more like a one-sided fight so I should be thinking of how to defend myself. I don¡¯t have any armor so that¡¯s out of the equation. Ah! Maybe I can attack to diffuse the power of his blow. Damn that Tabet, had to mess up my plans. Well at least I got something out of it.¡¯

    Akata sat back down and began to absorb the energy of heaven and earth to cultivate. Cultivating this way was an easy way to become stronger, but it was also the slowest method to use. Absorbing the blood of beasts was way faster as it allowed someone to take in some of the energy that the beast had absorbed into their own body.

    Thirty minutes passed and it was almost time for Tabet to come back. Akata opened his eyes and jumped up. He then looked around searching for any trace of Tabet. He couldn¡¯t feel any living existence in the area so he turned and ran off into the distance. He headed toward the coast of the island so that the next time he was pushed back by the beast he wouldn¡¯t crash into all of the trees and rocks.

    After a while Akata could see the coastline of the island. He could even hear the waves crashing on the shore of the island. ¡°Ah there is the ocean!¡± Akata said with a bit of happiness.

    ¡°Why are you so happy to see the ocean I wonder? Does it perhaps have to do with the love of swimming? Or maybe you just like the view? Care to share?¡±

    As Akata was getting closer to the shore he heard a calm cheerful voice right beside him. He unconsciously turned his head to see a crimson red tiger laying on the ground watching him. His eyes went wide and his body froze in place.

    ¡°It¡¯s about time that we get back to training don¡¯t you say? Huh?¡± Tabet¡¯s face abruptly changed as he focused in on Akata. He got up and took a step forward and was instantly in front of Akata. When he appeared in front of Akata his appearance had changed. He no longer was a four legged tiger with two tails and red fur. Now he stood on two legs and had frizzy long red hair. He also had a red beard that hung down low. Red hair covered over its body and it stood with its hands behind its back.

    ¡°Something has changed about you¡­ something about your cultivation base¡­ but I can¡¯t figure out what. It¡¯s almost like you have a second cultivation base.¡± Tabet lifted his hand to rest on his chin as he pondered over this. His eyes went wide as he made an, ¡°Ah!¡± sound. ¡°This cultivation base feels like it comes from the Plant Realm! Hehe maybe I can use you for something besides just a training partner.¡±

    A smile formed across Tabet¡¯s face as he reached out toward Akata.

 Chapter 46: Making A Deal

    Akata didn¡¯t have the right to retreat from Tabet¡¯s hand as he reached out. Tabet grabbed Akata by the shoulder and happily took a step forward. In the blink of an eye Akata found himself somewhere on the island by a small cave. The cave was well hidden as it was covered by trees, vines, and other things.

    However the plants in the area weren¡¯t lively at all. In fact most of the plants on the island were decrepit and old. It was an abandoned island after all with nobody to look after it.

    Tabet threw Akata down toward the cave. He then strode past him with unhurried steps. His face held reminiscences in it as he walked to the cave. A nostalgic aura washed over him as he got closer to it.

    ¡°This place was my home when I was younger. My family lived here long ago before the Vermilion Land War. It was a great war but alas, it split up the home where I lived.¡± Tabet stopped in front of the cave entrance and continued speaking.

    ¡°And when I say split up I literally mean it. My family had their land cast off of the mainland and pushed out into the vast ocean as punishment. My family had to survive on their own for generations but we managed to do it. But then a plant cultivator came to our land and ravage our already weakened family. Not only that but he cast some type of magic on us that cursed us; bringing death upon us in a slow manner. My tribe slowly died off one by one, now only a few of us remain.¡±

    He stopped talking, his back to Akata, but if Akata could see his front he would notice a hopeful gleam in his eyes. He turned to look at Akata. His eyes were sharp but they weren¡¯t menacing. He gave a complicated look at Akata, seemingly not knowing how to address this situation. In the kindest manner he could managed he squeezed out his sentence.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know how you did it kid. Maybe you have a connection with plant cultivators, or maybe you don¡¯t but¡­ you have to save the rest of my family. Only a plant cultivator can undo the magic that was cast on them.¡± He wasn¡¯t pleading with Akata, probably due to the passage of time he had long ago consigned himself to the fate of his family dying. So even if Akata couldn¡¯t save them he wouldn¡¯t be mad.

    Akata gave a confused look at the beast. The beast had used him as a ¡°training partner¡± just a few hours ago, now it wanted him to save his family? Akata had many thoughts surface in his head. One was that it was a beast who was asking for help, next was the fact that the beast called him a plant cultivator, another was that the beast didn¡¯t have any malicious will towards him.

    If the beast had threatened him to save his family then Akata would have no choice but to oblige even though he would have no idea what he would be doing. Yet it didn¡¯t happen that way. In fact, the beast didn¡¯t have any intentions to kill him since they first met. This thought had constantly boggled Akata¡¯s mind.

    Akata didn¡¯t care about the beast¡¯s family nor about the beast himself, but what he did care about was surviving for these next two months. If he didn¡¯t help this beast¡¯s family then it was possible that the beast would kill him. Even if he tried but failed it would still be possible. But, if Akata tried and succeeded then it would be immensely easier to survive on the island. Maybe he would even gain an ally as well.

    The problem was that Akata didn¡¯t know anything about plant cultivation. All he knew were some of the ranks and a little bit about advancing through them. All in all it was much more different than immortal cultivation.

    Before Akata could think any further Tabet spoke again. ¡°How about this, if you at least try and help my family I won¡¯t bother you anymore and won¡¯t seek you out to harm you. And if you save them then I can teach you a runic technique along with getting you to the 5th Grade. What do you say?¡± His broad voice sounded enticing.The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

    Akata couldn¡¯t help but be amazed. How could he turn down and offer such as this. He stood up and as he did his face became confused. ¡°You know runic techniques?¡± He had to ask. Techniques involving runes were something that mortals had come up with. How was it that a beast could use these techniques?

    ¡°Of course I know runic techniques. I¡¯m a Scarlet Runic Tiger after all. You humans devised many techniques from watching us beasts and other creatures, so who is to say that we couldn¡¯t do the same back? Long ago my species watched as you performed magic with runes and sought to copy it. That is how my Scarlet Runic Tiger race came to be.¡± Tabet spoke proudly as he pounded his chest.

    Seeing Akata¡¯s interest in the matter of runes he waved his hand in the air creating a long line of runes that glowed with bright light. To Akata they seemed extremely complex, mysterious, and dazzling; but to Tabet they were the most basic of runes he could create.

    Of course he figured Akata wouldn¡¯t notice this, his bet was to draw Akata in and looking at his now astonished face, it had apparently succeeded. Inwardly he was proud of himself but on the outside he held the look of some master of the arts.

    Akata stood there lost in thought. He ended up agreeing to the deal. First off, there were no downsides to the matter. Second off, if he succeeded then there were boundless rewards for him. He could learn more about plant cultivation, gain a new ally, have an easy time surviving on the island, and learn about runes.

    In truth he didn¡¯t care about the part of him getting to the 5th Grade as that was something he wasn¡¯t worried about. In due time he could get himself there without any problem whatsoever. So after a bit of ¡°thinking¡± he agreed to try and heal the family of Scarlet Runic Tigers.

    Tabet nodded his head and his face turned serious. ¡°If you do anything to worsen their condition however, I will immediately kill you.¡± He said before turning toward the cave entrance. ¡°Follow me.¡± Tabet¡¯s red hair grew in size as it covered all over his body. His body became more feral-like and his fingernails and teeth grew longer. Soon he was back to his original appearance of the red furred tiger.

    Akata felt his heart freeze over from the beast¡¯s threat. It filled his body with an icy coldness that he had never felt before. ¡®What a strong killing intent.¡¯ Akata couldn¡¯t help but gulp down some saliva. He then took a step and followed after the tiger.

    Inside the cave it was murky and became darker as they walked further in it. Soon Akata wasn¡¯t able to see a thing inside. He held a finger in the air in front of him as he ignited a black and red flame on it. The flame surprisingly brought a bright light, even though it was a dark flame. It immediately filled the cave with warmth that spread out to cover him and Tabet.

    Tabet lifted and eyebrow as he felt the warmth rush over him. ¡®Hellfire? He¡¯s able to cultivate hellfire at his level? Just where did he get his hands on it? Not only does he cultivate in the Mortal and Plant Realm, but he has access to Demon Realm techniques. Just who is this kid that randomly appeared on my island?¡¯

    ¡°Hey kid, you still haven¡¯t told me your name yet. It¡¯ll be nice to know a little about you, you know?¡± Tabet spoke out in an echoing voice.

    Akata looked over at the beast but kept his pace up. ¡°I¡¯d rather not. I¡¯m still wary of a beast like you after all.. If I go around giving my name to everybody, who is to say I won¡¯t be hunted down?¡± Akata spoke calmly.

    ¡°You got a point there¡­ then again, I told you my name so it¡¯s only courteous to give your name back. And I gave you my name not long ago so I would prefer you to use it rather than calling me a beast. I have more intelligence than an average beast after all.¡± Tabet spoke proudly, howling out showing his pride.

    Akata couldn¡¯t help but agree with this fact. Not only was this beast able to speak, it could also transform to look like a mortal as well. Just how scary of a thought was this? If all beasts who were this intelligent could do this, was there no way to tell them apart from a mortal?

    ¡°My name is Akata. I have a few questions myself I you don¡¯t mind my asking¡­ Tabet?¡± The only way Akata could clear up his confusion was by asking Tabet himself. He also had the feeling that if he didn¡¯t comply with Tabet¡¯s wishes then he wouldn¡¯t answer.

    ¡°First, how are you able to speak and turn into a mortal? Second, just what is a plant cultivator? And third, what exactly am I supposed to do to heal¡­ your family?¡± Akata spoke quickly, he couldn¡¯t believe that he was asking a beast some questions to clear up his confusion.

    Tabet smiled happily as he trotted along the path in the cave. ¡°Hehe¡­ what wonderful questions to ask. To answer your first question, us transforming into mortals have to do with the energy of heaven and earth. Heaven and earth favor the mortals, so when us creatures cultivate and reach a high enough cultivation base we are able to connect with the will of heaven and earth and turn our appearances into mortals.

    As far as speaking goes, we have been speaking this language longer than you mortals. You actually obtained your language from us. The will of heaven and earth just kept our understanding of each other separate. So once we have attained a certain level that allows us to turn into mortals, we are able to communicate with each other. But for those that aren¡¯t able to truly speak before transforming, they are able to speak mentally.

    Secondly, Plant cultivators were¡­¡±

 Chapter 47: Waging War

    Red Cloud Sect

    A man could be seen leaning against the wall drinking some wine from a flagon. He was located in Red Cloud Hall along with Third Elder and the Sect Leader. He took a sip and then turned his head toward the Sect Leader.

    ¡°Where exactly did you send Akata? The place you sent my incarnation was a place I couldn¡¯t recognize as belonging near here. Also when I went there I felt multiple auras that were just as strong as the Earthly Rank, if not stronger. How could Akata survive that?¡±

    The Sect Leader looked at Fourth Elder with a calm face and smiled. ¡°Elder Hao Beng¡­ You¡¯ve tended to probe for information a lot a lot lately. Could you be up to something perhaps? Maybe you¡¯re turning on the sect?¡± She spoke slowly and cheerfully, almost in a joking manner.

    Fourth Elder took another sip of wine and spoke. ¡°I¡¯m just a bit more curious about affairs in the world as I have progressed in cultivation. Is that such a crime? How could I turn on the sect?¡± He took another swig.

    The Sect Leader took a long look at Fourth Elder then chuckled lightly. ¡°Relax. I sent Akata to a place to temper himself. He is a special person after all, but don¡¯t worry he isn¡¯t in any danger at all. He¡¯ll be back in two months, by that time things will be different.¡±

    Fourth Elder gave a side glance toward the Sect Leader as he was drinking out of his flagon. He nodded and looked away.

    Third Elder listened to all of this without any interest. He was seated in the lotus position and gray light swirled around him.His eyes were closed and as Fourth Elder and the Sect Leader finished speaking, he transmitted his voice over to her.

    ¡°Why did you banish all of them? The ¡°punishment¡± you delivered to them seems a bit weird considering the circumstances. Especially to Xiun Wu who planned to kill Akata. Why keep him alive? Death surely would¡¯ve been appropriate for him without question.¡± After listening to the punishments the Sect Leader gave out he was a bit confused.

    She thought for a moment before transmitting her voice back. ¡°You could say that I¡¯m repaying a favor for helping Akata along.¡± She said calmly.

    ¡°Repaying a favor he did? And what could he have possibly done?¡± Third Elder wasn¡¯t paying any attention to Akata when he was within Misty Forest, the Sect Leader was the only one who had eyes on him the whole time.

    ¡°You could say he gave a chance for Akata to upgrade his red rune. With all the blood that Akata spilled his red rune was able to absorb it. Although he doesn¡¯t notice anything changed about it, I saw the whole thing clearly. Absorbing the blood of beasts does increase his battle prowess a bit, but the true strength of the red rune comes from the blood of mortals.

    Akata was able to take that blood in thanks to Xiun Wu sending assassins to him. And since this was supposed to be secret, there won¡¯t be much repercussions for Akata in the future for killing so many people. You could say I also created an enmity between Akata and Xiun Wu so that he will constantly be targeted and will have to grow faster.

    That is why I kept Xiun Wu alive.¡± Sect Leader Fu said clearly to Third Elder. He, on the other hand listened in. He now understood how things were and felt that her actions were rather appropriate now. He didn¡¯t voice his agreement however and just kept his silence and continued meditating.

    White Water Empire. Gateway City

    Gateway City was the largest town located in the White Water Empire. It was a huge city that was full of life. People could be seen everywhere running around from place to place. Shops could be seen selling different merchandise to all the people on the streets. Many inns were full of people that were too tired to run around. Green and blue lanterns were lit on the side of the roads.

    Many people roamed throughout the city. Merchants could be seen behind their stalls, innkeepers were managing multiple rooms, guards were stationed at their post, and cultivators could be seen getting supplies and meditating.

    The city was full of immortal practitioners that practiced cultivation. So many practiced that the environment was rich with the energy of heaven and earth. It made life feel abundant, plants and people alike thrived in the city. More of the energy was concentrated in the southern part of the city. In a sect called the Holy Water Sect.If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

    The Holy Water Sect was the largest sect in the empire. The strongest practitioners in the empire were housed here. Nobody dared to go against the Holy Water Sect, as it was a force that was unquestionably holding the empire together. The leaders of the empire were members of the sect. It could be said that going against the sect was like taking on the empire itself.

    In an exquisite building that was adorned with lanterns and banners, five people were in a room. Two of the people were dressed in similar clothing, and stood at the doorway making sure nobody entered. Shockingly, these two were in the Earthly Rank. A Rank that, if most others reached it in other sects or clans, they would be able to be an Elder. Yet these two were merely used as guards.

    The other three were seated in the center of the room around a table. One was a man, the other was a woman, and the other was a boy. They all wore extravagant clothing fit for royalty. Their azure robes glittered in the light. On the chest could be seen the insignia of the sect, a golden raindrop with a halo over it.

    Right now the man looked deeply at the boy. He spoke with a deep booming voice, ¡°So you were banished from the sect? Well it makes things easier to get you out I guess. Tell me all that you were able to learn from the sect, no matter how little or insignificant. I¡¯m happy to hear how you have been.¡±

    Xiun Wu looked respectfully at his father and nodded. He began to explain all that he had went through for the years he had been in the sect. Even though he had explained most of these things to his father before, he wanted to go through these memories again.

    He talked about the techniques and skills the sect showed him, the Elders and disciples of the sect, and even the treasures found in the sect. He spoke about everything he knew about and didn¡¯t hold anything back. Smiling as he talked, Xiun Wu showed happiness that he hadn¡¯t experienced in a while.

    His father listened closely, sometimes smiling himself, and nodded his head at times. After a few hours of listening to Xiun Wu, he spoke again. ¡°Good good. Not only have you been training in the sect you have also learned many things. Now¡­¡± His face turned serious as he spoke. ¡°What is the reason that you were banished? And tell me all of the details of the process and the events leading up to it.¡±

    Xiun Wu¡¯s smile froze and he immediately became serious himself. ¡°Father, the reason I was banished had to do with this scheme I had come up with. This disciple, named Akata, challenged my power so I had to assert my dominance. Therefore, I planned to get rid of him, but unfortunately the person I set up to do the deed ended up failing. Akata found out and we, along with others, started a huge brawl. At the moment before total destruction occurred, Fourth Elder stopped it.¡±

    ¡°So the one called Hao Beng stepped in? Interesting.¡± Xiun Wu¡¯s father said. ¡®Could it be because he was just close by or was it that they didn¡¯t want to reveal their top forces?¡¯ He mused to himself. ¡°Tell me of how the battle occurred.¡±

    ¡°I happened to provoke Ming Lu, so she started the wide spread attack first. She unleashed her Crimson Blizzard Storm which is at a stronger level now. To combat it, I used my Celestial Storm technique which destroyed it with ease. I then directed the full attack at Ming Xu to get rid of her, but then Akata stopped me.¡± Xiun Wu clenched his teeth together and resentment could be heard in his voice.

    ¡°He stopped your Celestial Storm?¡± At first Xiun Wu¡¯s father didn¡¯t put Akata in his eyes, but after hearing that Akata stopped his son¡¯s full attack by himself surprised him. ¡°Who is this Akata? How did he stop it?¡± He had to ask.

    ¡°He had this¡­ this technique that was too strong. It was actually a match for my Celestial Storm. He called it Astral Obliteration. If his cultivation base was at my level it would have easily overpowered my attack.¡± Xiun Wu said gnashing his teeth together.

    ¡°So he wasn¡¯t at your cultivation level? Having a technique as powerful as that, yet he has such a low cultivation base, was he special to the sect? Hmm¡­ Akata Akata, I never heard of this person before, yet he seems to be important. Tell me, what is his connection to the sect, his cultivation base, and more about this Astral Obliteration.¡±

    Xiun Wu immediately complied and answered thoroughly. ¡°At first he seemed insignificant, however in the last month or so, it was like he has been protected by the sect. His cultivation base should be at the 3rd Grade of the Mortal Rank. And his Astral Obliteration¡­ it was a mysteriously profound technique. He made this illusory rock that when he launched it out, it drew in the surrounding energy. Much more than what our Heavenly Waterdrops technique can handle.¡±

    The father¡¯s face was stiff as he listened. ¡®A random boy that is suddenly protected by the sect, a technique that can combat the Heavenly Waterdrops even though the person is a full 2 Grades lower¡­ There has to be more to this than I thought.¡¯ He mused. ¡°And how were the consequences handled? Who else besides you was punished and how?¡±

    ¡°Four of us total were punished by the sect. The two sisters from the Ming Clan were banished before me. And Akata had his punishment dealt with after me, so I don¡¯t know about that one.¡± Xiun Wu spoke softly.

    His father thought for a moment. At his level of cultivation certain events would evoke clues to him. Clearly the way things were handled were awkward. If Xiun Wu and Akata were the main culprits then why were they last to get banished?

    ¡°Well then, this makes things interesting. Go back to your room and start cultivating again. In due time, we shall start our war. I want you to reach the peak 6th Grade by the end of two months, if not the 7th Grade.¡±

    Xiun Wu nodded his head and stood up to leave. His father watched him leave and then turned his head to the woman beside him. His eyes were sharp as he seriously said, ¡°This makes things a bit more difficult. If the Red Cloud Sect has something else up their sleeve then this war will be more intense than I thought. If young people such as this Akata can use techniques this strong with such a weak cultivation base, then other, stronger disciples surely will be able to do so also.¡±

    The woman looked deeply at him and nodded her head. She had been listening to the whole conversation between Xiun Wu and her husband and knew how things stood. When she spoke her voice was soft like an angels and calmed the hearts of anyone who listened.

    ¡°Even if they did get a truly profound technique, they don¡¯t have enough experts to use it to make a difference. Besides when we strike out, it¡¯ll be a surprise and we¡¯ll aim for the higher ups. They won¡¯t know what hit them when we attack. My clan will have an attack squad to support us, but they will mostly focus on intel and defense.¡±

    ¡°Mn. I know. Plus we have the aid of the Paladin Gate Sect to help us as well. We may suffer casualties but even still it will be a one-sided raid.¡± He stood up and his voice reverberated throughout the room. ¡°In two more months we will wage war on the Red Cloud Sect and attack in unison with my Holy Water Sect, your Jiandan Clan, and the Paladin Gate Sect.¡± He turned to the guards and ordered out, ¡°Relay my message to the involved parties and make sure word doesn¡¯t get out.¡± He then took his leave out of the room with his wife by his side.

 Chapter 48: Scarlet Tiger Tribe

    Tabet was leading Akata through the cave towards his family. He spoke in a deep echoey voice. ¡°Plant cultivators were originally plants that were able to cultivate the energy of heaven and earth. They were in turn, just like humans and beasts, except they were just plants.¡±

    Akata was shocked by what he heard. Of course he heard a bit about the Plant Realm from Peizhi Xiuying but she didn¡¯t get too deep into it. He listened in closer.

    ¡°Plants practiced immortal cultivation through the use of the Plant Realm. Us beasts have the Beast Realm and you mortals have the Mortal Realm. Just like we can advance in cultivation, so can plants.¡±

    ¡°So does that mean they practice cultivation by themselves? You know¡­ without the help of others?¡± Akata was curious.

    ¡°Ahaha of course they can practice by themselves! They have always practiced by themselves to begin with. Only until somewhat recently have others found out how to use any plant and cultivate with it. But even still those aren¡¯t true plant cultivators.

    A true plant cultivator is one that cultivates in the Plant Realm. I felt the aura of plants on you, but I didn¡¯t see any plants on you at all. But the strange thing was that I felt the aura of a mortal and plant mixed in with you. That was truly interesting.

    From the stories I heard, true plant cultivators were able to walk alongside mortals and beasts. The power they wielded was the power of nature. They were tough people to face, no matter if there were hundreds of them or just one. With each Rank they passed through their power would become even more unbelievable.

    From the Seed Rank they find other plants and set their foundation. Once they reach the Flora Rank they grow and attune themselves with nature. In the Verdure Rank the nature around them is at their control. And then¡­ there¡¯s the Taiga Rank. The power of a plant cultivator explosively grows out. I don¡¯t know why that is but any other cultivator on that same level of Rank would have a hard time facing them.¡±

    Akata nodded his head. Now he had a better understanding of how plant cultivators were like in the past. But he still had more questions to ask. ¡°What happened to the plant cultivators?¡±

    ¡°Well some say they moved into hiding, others say that they died out. My guesses go with the first although I don¡¯t know why that is. Perhaps they came across a threat that endangered them. Anyways, it didn¡¯t spell good for my family. Without a plant cultivator there was no way for my family to heal and recover.¡± Tabet shook his head.

    ¡°But alas one has appeared before me. I don¡¯t know how you managed to cover it up before, but now that I feel the aura of a plant cultivator on you I will lead you to heal my family. Which brings me to your last question.

    My family, when we were cast out of our home, was weak and injured. In time however we would have eventually recovered some of our strength. But then, we were attacked by a plant cultivator. It had been many many years since a true plant cultivator had been seen. But one just had to show up in front of my family. And to cause harm as well!¡± A flash of murderous intent appeared in Tabet¡¯s eyes as he spoke.

    ¡°He used some kind of nature magic that horribly poisoned my already weak family. Luckily he wasn¡¯t that strong of a plant cultivator so the effect didn¡¯t instantly kill us. But it did slowly deteriorate our lives and strength. I wasn¡¯t in the main area the attack was cast at so I suffered less damage than the others but the effect still lingers within the plants. We are constantly being weakened by this dreadful technique.

    It affects every other living being in the area that isn¡¯t a plant. That is why there are no other beasts here. In fact some of the younger generation and weaker members of my family has perished already.¡± Tabet looked at Akata and could see the worry in his face.

    ¡°You shouldn¡¯t be affected since you are a plant cultivator yourself. Seeing as how you have the aura of a plant and all. As to how to treat my family though. I¡¯m not too sure. Hopefully you will be able to find something out.¡± He said while sighing with a sense of loss.This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

    Akata nodded his head. ¡°Mn. I will try my best.¡± In truth he didn¡¯t care whether Tabet¡¯s family died or not. But after finding out he could get knowledge on runes then of course he wanted to try and get his hands on it. He followed Tabet deeper into the cave, his hellfire flickering in the cave.

    Soon Akata saw a light appear ahead of him. He looked over to see Tabet speed his pace up a bit, almost unconsciously. ¡®So we¡¯re here then. Time to see if I can really treat these people then. Maybe can learn a bit about being a plant cultivator and see if any perks come from it.¡¯

    Once Akata felt the addition to his dantion region, he could sense nature much more clearly. His nature energy and sense made minor changes but he could feel them. He could sense a different kind of life in plants that he never felt before. Almost like the plants were new born people waiting to experience growth and venture out into the world.

    But that was all that he could feel from the plants, nothing else changed in his perspective about the plants or the area he was in. Nothing else except for one thing that he felt. He mused to himself, ¡®There is this kind of energy being passed down between all the plants that I have passed by. Like they are sharing something between each other. It feels like it is making them stronger, sort of giving them life.¡¯

    As Akata came closer to the light in the cave he could feel a stifling pressure form in the air. The pressure almost caused him to shudder. He looked ahead and soon he could see figures around a fire.

    The figures were all Scarlet Tigers and were circled around a fire. Some of the Scarlet Tiger¡¯s were as long as six meters and some as small as half a meter. However, no matter the case, all of them looked to be in terrible condition. They didn¡¯t have any of the luster that Tabet gave off. Their fur was ragged and rough, their claws were broken along with their saber teeth. Some of them only had one tail, others didn¡¯t have any, apparently some of their tails had been stripped off of them.

    When Akata saw them he didn¡¯t know what to think. He couldn¡¯t connect the beasts he saw to Tabet. They looked like they came from completely different backgrounds. They looked terribly poor and in horrible conditions. That was especially so when Akata came further in and saw some bones in the corner of the cave.

    ¡°Great Priest Bambe, I have brought along someone who may be able to help. His name is Akata and may have the capabilities to heal our family. There is no need to worry about him harming us, given his strength even you can easily kill him off, let alone me.¡± Tabet yelled out, catching the attention of the other members of his tribe.

    Of course he didn¡¯t really have to say any of this. The other members of his tribe felt the aura of a plant cultivator approaching him and immediately became wary. However, after sensing the cultivation base of the person and seeing Tabet in front of the person their worries eased up a bit. Coupled with the words of Tabet, glimmers of hope shined within the eyes of the younger generation.

    ¡°Young Lord Tabet, where did you find this person? And can he really save us?¡± An old decrepit voice echoed from a corner in the cave room. The corner had several old Scarlet Tigers laying there. One of the foremost tigers rose its head up and looked toward Tabet.

    ¡°I found him out on the island just today. I was originally going to play with him but then I sensed the aura of a plant cultivator on him and therefore thought to bring him here to heal you. From what I have gathered he doesn¡¯t know much about being a plant cultivator, so I don¡¯t know if he can heal us all.¡± Tabet spoke out sincerely.

    ¡°Is it true that you have brought a plant cultivator in our midst?¡± Another voice, this one deep and brooding, boomed throughout the cave room to fill the ears of everyone present. When the voice spoke out everyone who was able bowed their heads down in greeting, even Tabet did so.

    With his head still down he spoke out respectfully. ¡°Lord Father, he is a plant cultivator, but at the same time is not a plant cultivator. He cultivates in the Mortal Realm and in the Plant Realm.¡± He was extremely respectful when he spoke.

    *Cough cough* ¡°Cultivates in the Mortal and PLant Realm? Bring him to me and Great Priest Bambe, come here also.¡± The deep voice echoed.

    Akata looked around but couldn¡¯t tell where this voice was coming from. When he heard Great Priest Bambe¡¯s voice, he couldn¡¯t help but feel an existence like no other appeared before him. It was like that beast could crush him with only a single glance. But the voice that had just spoken out was even stronger than that existence. Akata couldn¡¯t even begin to imagine what level of cultivation that voice belonged to.

    ¡®Just what did I get myself into? There is no way that I can stand up to these people in the slightest. I can tell just by looking that they are extremely weak, but even still they bring a fearsome presence to me.¡¯ Akata had sweat form on his forehead.

    Tabet raised his head and smiled broadly. He then nudged Akata forward to a corner. As they moved along, Great Priest Bambe struggled up and moved as well. They all moved toward the corner where Akata could see that there was a passageway. He entered the passageway to see a short tunnel proceeding to another room in the cave. As he came closer to the room, the pressure became increasingly harsh. Akata found it hard to breathe within the tunnel the further he moved along. It got to the point where he even collapsed on the ground gasping for air.

    ¡°Oh!¡± Tabet rushed over and changed into his human form, then picked Akata up off the ground. He rotated his cultivation base and let it cover over Akata. Akata took in a deep breath and color returned to his face. ¡°Sorry about that. I forgot my family has to constantly rotate their cultivation base in order to fight off this magic. So the pressure could become a bit too much for lower Ranks. That is why the younger generation and weaker members of our tribe stays in that room, while the stronger members have to get their own room.¡±

    He put Akata down and let him walk. Akata felt fear deep deep within him now. Just the pressure from the beasts rotating their cultivation base was enough to almost kill him. Just how terrifying of an existence were these beasts?

 Chapter 49: The Plant Cultivator

    Even with Tabet¡¯s cultivation base protecting him, Akata still felt a bit of pressure from the room they were approaching. It was an unavoidable pressure that seemed like it would follow you wherever you went. Soon they were about to enter the room and the pressure coming from it was like no other. Akata took a deep breath and stepped inside.

    Inside he saw five Scarlet Tigers. They were all over six meters long. Four of them were laying around while one of them had his head raised. This one was in the center of the others and brought the most pressure out of them all. He quickly looked over Great Priest Bambe and Tabet as his eyes landed on Akata.

    Akata felt his body go numb and freeze as he looked into the eyes of this Scarlet Tiger. It was like his heart, soul, mind, and everything else could be seen through with the gaze of that Scarlet Tiger. Akata could immediately tell that this tiger was the leader of the tribe.

    ¡°So this is the person? Hmm. He does seem to have two cultivation bases. And one of them is definitely of a plant cultivator.¡± The Scarlet Tiger let out a cold roar and continued. ¡°Are you confident in healing us from this magic young one?¡± He spoke directly to Akata.

    Akata felt an immense pressure weigh down on him. He almost couldn¡¯t speak. With great effort however he uttered the words, ¡°I¡­ I¡¯m not confident in saving you, since I don¡¯t really know about being a plant cultivator. However I will try my best.¡± Akata added the last part to make him sound useful to the leader.

    The leader nodded his head and spoke to Great Priest Bambe. ¡°You will oversee and help direct him in anyway that you can.¡± He paused for a moment and then spoke again. ¡°Have him attempt to heal Balii first. Tabet come and speak with me for a while. That will be all, once you are done come report back to me.¡± He then sent them off with his eyes.

    ¡°Yes Lord Tafei.¡± Great Priest Bambe said with his head lowered. He then turned to Akata and said. ¡°Follow me.¡± He then lead Akata back into the room where they had come from. Tabet turned and walked toward his father Lord Tafei.

    Down the passageway Great Priest Bambe spoke to Akata. ¡°Balii is my granddaughter so don¡¯t do anything to hurt her. Lord Tafei probably made her go first so that I will pay extra attention to this matter and get the most out of it. I believe that he wasn¡¯t wrong either, in fact he was completely right in doing so. We¡¯ll be operating in the seclusion chambers so nobody will disturb us.¡±

    They arrived in the room with most of the other members of the tribe and Great Priest Bambe yelled out, ¡°Balii come here.¡± As his voice echoed out, a small Scarlet Tiger rose its head and slowly stood up. Great Priest Bambe approached the young tiger and picked her up with his mouth and put her on his back. He turned to face Akata and said, ¡°let¡¯s go.¡±

    The three of them then headed to another chamber that was connected to the cave. The pressure in the chamber was much more noticeably weaker than any other room.

    ¡°This is where we put the people who lose themselves at. It keeps them at bay and from others so it will be perfect to perform your actions here.¡± Great Priest Bambe sat the young tiger down and backed away. ¡°Well let¡¯s see what you can do then shall we.¡±

    Akata¡¯s body washed over with a sense of nervousness. He didn¡¯t even know where to start. He approached Balii slowly and looked her body over. The only thing that looked out of place about her was that her fur was a bit rough. But that was it. ¡®Okay¡­ so nothing wrong with her appearance, I guess it has to do with what¡¯s on the inside then?¡¯

    ¡®Hmm. But how do I probe what¡¯s on the inside though? I know people with higher cultivation bases are able to do so, but how?¡¯ Akata turned to Great Priest Bambe and spoke. ¡°Can you detect anything wrong with her internally? Maybe something out of place?¡±

    Great Priest Bambe looked over frowning and moved over to Balii. Of course he had done this multiple times already but had found nothing. He then placed a paw on her and caused his energy to roam through her body. He checked every inch of her body for anything abnormal. He looked thoroughly and carefully, for he had hope to save his granddaughter.If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.

    He shook his head and spoke calmly. ¡°Nothing. I don¡¯t detect anything abnormal at all. Not any kind of poison or even something strange about her internally.¡± He took his paw off and backed up.

    Akata nodded his head. He was watching Great Priest Bambe¡¯s movements closely. He then got closer to Balii and placed a hand on her as well. He tried to mimic the movements of the tiger. Of course after placing his hand down he didn¡¯t know what else to do.

    ¡®Maybe just sending out my energy will do? But I will have to be very careful not to hurt her, otherwise he might kill me on sight.¡¯ Akata slowly rotated his cultivation base and sent out a wave of energy throughout Balii¡¯s body. The wave was as calm as a still lake.

    As he did this he could sense all of Balii¡¯s body. Her organs, her meridians, her cultivation base. Everything within Balii, he could sense at this moment. After carefully probing Balii¡¯s body he couldn¡¯t find anything strange either.

    ¡®I didn¡¯t find anything strange at all either? That¡¯s strange. But from the looks of things they are definitely suffering from something. What to do what to do?¡¯ It was at this point that Akata suddenly remembered something important.

    ¡®How stupid of me! This was done by a plant cultivator. They are way more powerful than I am, yet they weren¡¯t able to sense it, so how can I? Probably only someone with a plant cultivation base could.¡¯

    Akata calmed his mind and closed his eyes. He slowly breathed out and tried something he never had done before. Looking through his own body he found his dantion region and found the little piece of land. He saw his mortal cultivation base sitting there cross legged, glowing with a white light. Behind the glowing mortal cultivation base there was a sproutling growing from the ground. It too was glowing with a white light, however this one was much more dimmer.

    Akata¡¯s consciousness approached the sproutling. He silently murmured to himself, ¡°Rotate.¡± All of a sudden the sprout trembled slightly. Akata could tell what level the sprout was at, he could feel the cultivation base power radiating off of it. ¡®Seed Rank Grade 1.¡¯

    His plant cultivation base power erupted forth and sent a wave of energy throughout Balii¡¯s body. ¡®Not enough.¡¯ Akata said mentally. His eyes shined with a sharp light as he channeled the nature energy in the place and mixed it in with his plant cultivation power.

    The plant cultivation power was backed by the surrounding nature energy. Using the nature energy made it much easier to guide and search through Balii¡¯s body. Instantly Akata could sense a familiar energy throughout her body. ¡®This is¡­¡¯ His crimson eyes went wide with understanding.

    Akata turned to face Great Priest Bambe and spoke out, ¡°Great Priest Bambe, tell me exactly what happened when that plant cultivator came here.¡± His tone was serious as he spoke to him.

    The seriousness of Akata surprised Great Priest Bambe. His face instantly became serious as well as he spoke. ¡°Do you know what is wrong? Tell me about it!¡± He rushed forth and was in front of Akata in less than the blink of an eye.

    ¡°I¡¯m not too sure, but I think I know what is happening. But I can¡¯t be positive unless I know exactly what happened when that plant cultivator came and used whatever magic on your tribe. So hurry and tell me.¡±

    Great Priest Bambe¡¯s eyes showed with a glimmer of hope. Something that hadn¡¯t appeared in years had surfaced to his face. He nodded his head in understanding and then transmitted his words to Akata¡¯s mind. He didn¡¯t want to waste any time, and to explain everything to Akata through words was going to be too slow. So he thought to send his words mentally, which would go much faster.

    ¡°He made himself known around two hundred or so years ago. None of us could have guessed at what he had come here for. At the time we had just been cast out of our home. This land was somewhat normal. Many different creatures roamed the land and the plants were much more lively. Some humans even lived here. We lived in peace with each other and balance was normal.

    Of course we were recovering our energy and healing our injuries but even still we were well off. We were actually quite content with how things were at the time. Looking forward to our new life we settled down into this land for good.

    We didn¡¯t even know that that plant cultivator lived with us at the time. It was all just too normal. One day, like usual, our tribe was sitting around in a group recovering our energy. All of a sudden a man approached our camp. He wasn¡¯t directly by us, but on top of a tree, wearing leaf clothing. We heard him yell, his voice booming throughout the land.

    He said, ¡°I give my life to this land! Heed my call and listen to my will nature!¡± That was all that he said. We all looked toward him as if he was crazy. Then nature went through turmoil. The winds whipped by, thunder crackled in the sky, and the waves crashed on the shore. Heck, lighting even struck him multiple times. Then he flashed an incantation gesture and roared, his body transformed into a mist that dispersed into the air. The plants in the area shook and the tree he was on grew explosively.

    We all felt a rush of nature energy blow through our bodies. After that he had disappeared and everything went back to normal. We didn¡¯t think anything of it at the time so we continued on with our lives. Soon our tribe began to go weak. The children of later generations were infected with the feeling of weakness as well.

    Not just us but everything else on the land started dying as well. Even the plants started to become worn and old. It was truly sad. Well that¡¯s how things happened.¡±

    Akata nodded his head in understanding. He then turned to face Balii once more and sat down cross legged. He closed his eyes and began to connect with nature.

 Chapter 50: Healing the Tribe

    Akata sat down cross legged and focused on using the nature energy around him with his plant cultivation base. Since his plant cultivation base was so weak, he needed something to help boost it. He focused in on Balii¡¯s body internally and felt the strange energy within it.

    ¡°If I am right¡­¡± Akata spoke out loud. ¡°... then the strange thing I am feeling within her should be energy of that plant cultivator.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re able to feel the something in her body?¡± Great Priest Bambe¡¯s heart filled with joy. By now he had completely forgot about his own body. To hear that something was actually within their bodies was great news in a sense. In fact, the tribe wasn¡¯t even sure if their decline had anything to do with the plant cultivator at all. They could only guess since that was the only weird event that had occurred to them in the years that they have been on this island.

    For years they knew that something was wrong but had never been able to sense what is what or how to stop it. But now, Akata had found something within them. You could say that Akata had halfway completed their goal of saving their tribe.

    ¡°Do you know how to get rid of that energy then?¡± Great Priest Bambe asked. His voice became much more respectful now that he heard Akata¡¯s words. He truly didn¡¯t want to offend Akata right now.

    ¡°I may have a way to deal with this energy.¡± Akata in fact did have a way that he thought might work to deal with the energy. ¡°This should be the life energy of that plant cultivator. If I am right then, he didn¡¯t really intend to hurt your tribe at all. This must have been a consequence of using that magic and failing. I guess the backlash of that magic destroyed him and since your tribe was close by it must have infected you all as well.¡±

    Great Priest Bambe¡¯s eyes went wide. The plant cultivator didn¡¯t even mean to hurt their tribe? If what Akata said was true about them getting infected by the consequences of the man¡¯s magic then¡­ how strong was that magic? And how strong was that cultivator? This actually had fear develop in his heart.

    He had already had fear linger in his heart from the start. Seeing as how one person¡¯s magic could affect a whole tribe of beasts, even down to the younger generation that had yet to be born. And as strong as the older generation was, they were still put into a deadly bind.

    ¡°Well what way do you have to deal with the life energy of this plant cultivator? Will it be dangerous to use? Are there any drawbacks?¡± Great Priest Bambe was frantic. He was eager to save his tribe and his granddaughter but was still cautious about the consequences of the method that Akata had in mind.

    ¡°From what I understand there shouldn¡¯t be any. But I will have to try it out first to be sure. I need full concentration in order to do this, as this will be my first time trying this.¡± Before he began to work he turned to Great Priest Bambe and spoke slowly. ¡°I will do my best to save your granddaughter.¡± He turned back and closed his eyes in concentration.

    Akata didn¡¯t know why he cared so much about helping this tribe now. Usually he didn¡¯t care about anyone or anything but himself, but now he wanted to help this tribe. He had even completely forgotten about what he was promised after helping the them.

    ¡®Since when did I become so driven to help others? That¡¯s not like me at all. Am I even me anymore? Ugh¡­ I feel so mushy inside, I¡¯ll need to see a doctor back at the sect after this cause I can¡¯t be alright.¡¯ Akata expelled the thought from his mind and fully concentrated on the task at hand.

    Great Priest Bambe was extremely grateful towards Akata. Even if Akata didn¡¯t succeed in his efforts of healing his granddaughter Balii, he would still repay Akata for his kindness.Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

    Akata transformed the usually calm nature energy into an aggressive torrent. He flooded the wave of nature energy into Balii¡¯s body and guided it using his plant cultivation base. It didn¡¯t tire him out since he was mainly using nature energy and he was extremely familiar with it.

    He used the nature energy to gather all of the foreign life energy within Balii¡¯s body and extract it out. ¡®Now where should I put this energy? I can¡¯t just let it roam free around here otherwise it just infect them again.¡¯ Akata thought for a moment before an idea came to his head.

    He then rotated his red rune and rushed the life imbued nature energy into his own body. The red rune cleansed the energy and assimilated it into energy that could be absorbed by Akata. ¡®Ha so I can absorb this through the use of my red rune. So it doesn¡¯t only absorb blood, but can absorb life energy itself.¡¯ Akata smiled at this and continued on until he was able to cleanse Balii¡¯s body completely of the foreign life energy.

    Balii had been unconscious this whole time. The foreign life energy had taken a huge toll on the younger generation. Without the strength to back them up, they would eventually die. Once all the foreign life was expelled from Balii, she looked much more peaceful and calm. Anyone could visibly see that she was getting better.

    Akata let out a deep breath and smiled. ¡°That is all of it. She should be fine and no longer infected by the foreign life energy.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s is good. Very good.¡± Great Priest Bambe said excitingly and came to the side of Balii. ¡°Then does that mean you can heal the rest of us then?¡± He asked hopefully.

    ¡°Yes, I can heal the rest of your tribe.¡± Akata said. But then his face turned serious. ¡°I can confidently heal the younger generation of your tribe that wasn¡¯t directly present at the time of the plant cultivator. Other people, such as yourself I¡¯m not so sure. It may take exceptionally more time to heal you.¡±

    During the process of using his nature energy, Akata obviously felt Great Priest Bambe¡¯s body and the foreign life energy within him. The energy within his body was much deeper and rooted into his body since he was present at the time of the magic use. It would take much more effort to heal him and the older generation than the young ones.

    Great Priest Bambe understood this and nodded his head. ¡°As long as the younger generation can survive then that is enough to make sure that our tribe lives on. You can worry about us old timers later.¡± He spoke without hesitation.

    ¡°Mn.¡± Akata nodded as well. ¡°Then to save time I want to do a group healing. Can you gather all of the beasts who weren¡¯t present during the magic attack so that I can heal them all at the same time?¡±

    ¡°A group healing?¡± Great Priest Bambe was surprised at this. He had thought that just healing his granddaughter had taken a lot out of Akata. He had saw the confused and helpless looks of Akata¡¯s face during the healing session. But who would have thought that those looks were do to Akata trying to figure out how to use the energy for his own use.

    ¡°Are you sure you can do a group healing? We would rather you go one by one and be thorough than to do a group healing and mess up.¡± He wasn¡¯t confident in Akata¡¯s abilities at all.

    ¡°Yes, I¡¯m sure I can do a group healing easily. The faster I heal them the better the chances they have of recovering.¡± Akata said. In his mind he was thinking. ¡®My nature sense can spread out to cover this whole cave and then some. I can heal all of the younger generation even without you gathering them up. But I don¡¯t want to show my abilities like that and therefore give you a reason to keep me. But alas I want to get back to training as fast as possible as well, so I can¡¯t just heal them all one by one.¡¯

    Great Priest Bambe looked hesitant but after seeing the confidence of Akata, coupled with his own eagerness to heal his tribe, he didn¡¯t wait any longer. He picked up his granddaughter and spoke. ¡°I¡¯ll report back to Lord Tafei and get his permission. Once that is over I¡¯m sure he will agree to have all of the younger generation go through a group healing.¡± He bowed his head down and exited the room.

    As he was walking out he spoke again. ¡°Wait here for further word. I¡¯ll be back soon. Don¡¯t go anywhere, otherwise someone might strike you down and that will spell bad for all of us.¡± Then he left.

    Akata was left alone in the room. Of course he didn¡¯t mind waiting there. He sat cross legged and went into meditation. In his dantion region he could feel that the sprout was slowly becoming more powerful. ¡®If I¡¯m able to convert all this life energy into something my Plant Realm can use, then I can definitely step up in the Seed Rank.¡¯

    After a bit of time Akata felt a disturbance in the atmosphere. He wasn¡¯t scared though as he slowly opened his eyes. As he did he saw tens of Scarlet Tiger¡¯s come into the room that he was in. They all looked weak and some even had to be carried in by the older generation. They all sat around Akata who was in the center of the room.

    Akata looked around at all of the beasts who were in the room and smiled. ¡°I assume you were all told about what is about to happen. I assure you that nothing bad will happen and soon, you all will be healed completely.

    You all should be calm and ease your bodies. This process should be soothing and won¡¯t be painful at all. Now let¡¯s get started.¡± He closed his eyes and as he did, all the tigers followed suit. The place was extremely quiet and nobody moved at all. Soon all of them felt a weird energy enter their bodies.

 Chapter 51: Taking In the Glory

    Akata sat in the center of the group of Scarlet Tigers. Most of the Scarlet Tigers in the room were fairly young, in fact some of them were around Akata¡¯s age. He didn¡¯t know why, but Akata felt sympathy for these tigers. Internally he sighed and continued.

    His nature energy washed over all of the people present. His nature energy transformed into a torrent as it flooded into their bodies. These people were born after the incident of the plant cultivator so the foreign life inside of their bodies wasn¡¯t that deep. The Scarlet Tigers didn¡¯t resist at all as Akata¡¯s nature energy went through their bodies.

    It was a fairly simple task for Akata to find and gather the foreign life of the plant cultivator from the bodies of the young generation. He just dragged out the event so as to make it seem difficult to the older generation. They couldn¡¯t sense it so Akata wasn¡¯t worried about them finding out about the fact he was taking his time.

    He slowly and thoroughly converted the life force of the plant cultivator into energy he could use for himself. In truth he could¡¯ve finished healing the entire group in about 15 minutes, but by the time half an hour came he wasn¡¯t even a quarter of the way through.

    All of the life force that was coming to Akata, was used to nourish his plant cultivation base. He felt his cultivation base rising rapidly as he absorbed more and more of the life force. By the time he was halfway through Akata experienced a breakthrough.

    ¡®2nd Grade of the Seed Rank. I feel a bit closer to nature now. Controlling nature energy is a bit more easier now.¡¯ Much change didn¡¯t come to Akata as he progressed to the next Grade of the Seed Rank. He probably wouldn¡¯t have even noticed it if he wasn¡¯t truly paying attention. He continued on with the absorption process.

    Great Priest Bambe was of course in the room observing what was happening. He was watching everything happen closely, making sure nothing went amiss. Instantly he noticed Akata breakthrough to the 2nd Grade. ¡®He broke through to the 2nd Grade? Well maybe it has to do with the fact that he is doing all this work under the use of his plant cultivation base. Or could it be because of something else?¡¯

    He kept his thoughts to himself and didn¡¯t let it show on his face. He still watched closely to what was happening and now kept a special eye on Akata. ¡®If something else happens I¡¯ll report it back to Lord Tahei.¡¯

    Of course Akata didn¡¯t think anything of the fact that Grand Priest Bambe was in the room, or that he might cause attention through his breakthrough. This was because even he himself didn¡¯t think anything of the breakthrough.

    He continued to take in the life force of the plant cultivator from the surrounding Scarlet Tigers. For the next hour, Akata absorbed the life force. Once he finished he let out a long breath. By then he had made it to the peak of the 2nd Grade. ¡°Done! All of the life force of the plant cultivator is expelled from the younger generation. Given enough time they should be able to completely recover.¡±

    Great Priest Bambe nodded his head. He was extremely grateful towards Akata. Not only did he save his granddaughter he also saved the rest of the younger generation. He didn¡¯t mind the fact that Akata had grown in cultivation base a bit.

    ¡°Excellent excellent! I will report this great news to Lord Tafei right away.¡± Great Priest Bambe said happily.

    ¡°My father told me to bring you to him when you finished healing us. I¡¯ll lead you to him right away.¡± A voice called out from the crowd of Scarlet Tigers. It was none other than Tabet that spoke out.

    Tabet was in the crowd of the younger generation. In truth, he was the most talented figure in the group of young cultivators. Therefore he was able to cultivate to a higher level than the others, and gain a stronger life force of his own to combat the foreign life force of the plant cultivator.Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more.

    Tabet walked up to Akata and stopped in front of him. He bowed his head and in thanks. When he did that, all the others followed suit and also bowed their heads. They were extremely grateful for what Akata did. He essentially gave them a new lease on life now.

    Akata scratched and smiled. ¡°Hehe no need to be like that, I just felt like helping out where I could. Besides, I was able to increase my cultivation base through constantly using my power. Also, I¡¯m not done with my task yet.¡± Akata turned to Tabet and spoke. ¡°You can lead me to your father now.¡±

    Tabet nodded his head and walked to his father¡¯s chambers. Behind them, Great Priest Bambe followed along. Nobody impeded their path and Akata could see looks of reverence for him. He simply nodded his head in response to them.

    They made their way to the chambers of Lord Tafei and the other leaders of the tribe. The pressure wasn¡¯t stifling at all to Akata, as this time he was protected by Great Priest Bambe and Tabet. You could say that they wouldn¡¯t let anything happen to Akata at all. They wanted to ensure Akata¡¯s safety.

    Soon they were in the room with the five leading figures. As soon as they entered the room, Tabet rushed to the side of his mother. She was beside Lord Tafei and was a fully six meters long. When she saw him she immediately let out a cry. ¡°Tabet! Did you get healed? Are you okay now?¡± She was extremely worried.

    ¡°Yes mother, I am well now thanks to Akata. He saved all of the younger generation as well.¡± Tabet turned and looked at Akata with praise.

    His mother also turned and looked at Akata. ¡°I truly thank you for your help. There is simply no way to repay your kindness. Please, if there is anything that you want just tell me. I will do anything that I can to get it for you.¡± She spoke gratefully, almost crying.

    Akata simply scratched the back of his head and laughed awkwardly.

    Tabet stepped in for him instead. ¡°Earlier I had promised Akata that I will get him to the 5th Grade and will teach him a runic technique. He must be very intrigued by runes and so I offered to teach him something in return for his help.¡±

    Akata felt embarrassed at Tabet¡¯s words. It sounded like he was taking advantage of the situation to benefit himself. Of course it was true but he didn¡¯t want it to be his image. He immediately shook his head and called out, ¡°No no no, there¡¯s no further need for that. It¡¯s okay, really.¡± He said earnestly.

    ¡®What am I saying right now? I do want that stuff, so why am I turning it down right now? I don¡¯t care about my outward image and what others think of me. So why am I giving up these treasures in order to save my image? Ugh¡­¡¯

    ¡°Nonsense.¡± A grand voice boomed out. It came from the other side of Tabet, from Lord Tafei. ¡°Since Tabet has promised you such things, and seeing how you have helped us then he has to deliver. Our tribe does not go back on their words. So Tabet will definitely give you what he has promised.

    However, that is what he has promised you. Right now I shall make you a personal offer on behalf of the tribe. But what to give you?¡± Lord Tafei looked solely at Akata at the moment, right in his eyes. It was as if he could see through all of Akata.

    ¡°That¡¯s right, our tribe will personally make an offer for you. But what should it be? Great Priest Bambe, do you have any ideas?¡± Tabet¡¯s mother asked.

    ¡°Lady Haque, I can¡¯t possibly offer gifts on behalf of the tribe by myself. This task should be up to all of us; yourself, Lord Tafei, and the other Elders of the tribe.¡± Great Priest Bambe spoke out respectfully towards Lady Haque.

    Lady Haque couldn¡¯t argue with his logic. It was indeed up to the higher ups to offer a gift to Akata together, as everyone else didn¡¯t have the authority.

    ¡°Tabet? You said that your young friend here is interested in runes, correct?¡± Lord Tafei asked his son as he turned his head.

    ¡°That is correct lord father. Akata is indeed interested in runic magic.¡± Tabet replied respectfully. He didn¡¯t add or leave out anything.

    ¡°Hmm¡­ I see. Then how about I personally teach Akata most of the things that I know about runic magic? Would that suffice?¡± Lord Tafei turned to look toward Akata and asked.

    Akata internally exploded out with excitement. The opportunity to learn about runes personally by the strongest being he has ever encountered? How could he possibly pass that up? At the same time how could he turn this offer down? They were already magnanimous enough to offer a second gift, so he didn¡¯t have the right to suggest something else or decline.

    Even if the gift was bad he couldn¡¯t not accept it. However, that wasn¡¯t the case anyways. He absolutely wanted this gift. He couldn¡¯t think of something that could possibly measure of to this. An increase in cultivation? He could advance anytime he wanted. Weapons or armor? He already had a scythe and his body was as tough as any armor he could use. Magical techniques? He couldn¡¯t even use magic that well.

    Runes were pretty much the only thing that interested him at the moment that the beasts could provide him. It wasn¡¯t like they could teach him how to better use the scythe after all. And neither of them had any elemental magic power stored up to use, or waste on him to teach.

    Akata didn¡¯t know how to respond to the offer right now. He didn¡¯t want to seem greedy but at the same time he couldn¡¯t reject their offer either. All he could do was nod his head slightly.

    Even without Akata voicing his answer, Lord Tafei could tell that this was what he wanted. With his level of strength, he could easily tell that Akata was excited about the offer. He nodded his head towards Akata and he continued on.

    ¡°Haha! Good good. Well all you have to do is heal the older generation. Once the older generation is healed then I will gift you my offer. Fair deal? This should be an easy task for you. Something you¡¯re capable of, right?¡±

 Chapter 52: Basic Rune Knowledge

    Akata clasped hands together and spoke out, ¡°I will do my best to bring the senior generation to full health and expel the foreign life force from you. However it will take a considerable greater amount of energy to do so because the life energy of the plant cultivator is embedded deep within you all.¡± Akata said in full truth.

    ¡°I will go first Lord Tafei and be the test subject of young Akata¡¯s skills. That way he will have a better understanding of how to proceed on healing us.¡± Great Priest Bambe suggested.

    Lord Tafei nodded his head. This idea was actually beneficial to them right now. He was actually planning on having someone be tested on, but he didn¡¯t know who it should be. All of the senior generation that had been present during the attack were important figures in the tribe.

    Great Priest Bambe actually had power that was equal to his own. In the tribe his status was second only to Lord Tafei himself. However, during the past years, he had taken on a much closer role to the tribe to care for the weakening members of the tribe.

    He was much healthier than the other members of the tribe. That was because during the attack however, he had been by the coast gathering plants to make medicine out of, therefore he had been the furthest away and was the least affected from the senior generation. This made him a good test subject in the tribe.

    ¡°Good. Akata take all the time that you need to prepare yourself in order to treat Great Priest Bambe. Hmm. I say you should treat him after my son Tabet treats you to his promises. That will be all. You are dismissed for now.¡± He spoke with a transcendent voice that carried power within it.

    ¡°Akata, we should head out immediately. I have much to teach you about runes. I guess I don¡¯t have to hold back on information either now. Oh! I have to get you to the 5th Grade as well. Ah! I guess it wouldn¡¯t hurt to increase your plant cultivation either. We have so much to do and so little time as well. Let¡¯s hurry let¡¯s go. What should we start with first? Runes? Mortal cultivation? Plant cultivation? How about we¡­¡± Tabet went on and on as he led Akata out of the chamber.

    Everyone in the chamber watched as Akata and Tabet were led out of the chamber. When they were out of sight Great Priest Bambe spoke. ¡°Lord Tafei, do you actually trust this Akata? He has came out of nowhere and we know nothing about his background. And he even turns out to be a true plant cultivator. We don¡¯t even know if he has truly healed our younger generation, for all we know it could be temporary.¡± He spoke his worries out.

    ¡°I know where you are getting at Great Priest Bambe. And I can tell that you are worried about the greater good of the tribe. However, this is the only chance that we have to save our tribe. For now, our children are safe and that in itself is good enough fortune for us.¡± Lord Tafei said.

    ¡°And with his cultivation level he couldn¡¯t do anything to harm the senior generation anyway. All he would be able to do is heal us. All we can do is hope that he means well and trust in him. There is no way for ourselves to take away this poisonous life force that dwells within us. All we can do is have a true plant cultivator treat us. And with all of them disappearing, our chances of encountering one is slim, let alone one that we can handle. So right now all we can do is trust in young Akata.¡±

    Great Priest Bambe nodded his head and then turned to leave. ''Hum[h, trifling Tafei. You will be the demise of our tribe.''

    ¡°Haque. We have to be wary of Great Priest Bambe. He is surely going to have something up his sleeve later on. And it is going to be soon.¡± Lord Tafei said in a low voice.

    Lady Haque nodded her head in agreement.

    ¡°Tafei and Haque come here.¡± A deep voice came from behind the five figures in the chamber. Three of the figures bowed their heads down at the sound of the voice. Lord Tafei and Lady Haque stood up and walked toward the voice.The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

    As they approached the voice, they came across another room. This room was a small one and was filled with light. The light came from a hole in the ceiling that brought sunshine in. The light shined on a man that was seated cross legged in the room.

    The man was completely naked and had a red beard and red hair. He gave off an ancient air but looked fairly young. Countless runes surrounded his body as they swirled in the air around him. Some parts of his skin had dark green splotches almost like a kind of moss. Vines could be seen growing from the green splotches and spreading out across the room.

    ¡°Father¡­¡± Tafei¡¯s and Haque¡¯s eyes filled with tears. This was the father of Tafei and he had protected the tribe back then from the full force of the plant cultivator¡¯s attack. He had taken the most damage all those years ago so that he could protect his tribe. He had been in critical condition ever since then but had been able to hang on due to his cultivation base.

    ¡°That young boy that you brought in¡­ he is a true plant cultivator?¡± He spoke very slowly, conserving his energy with each word.

    ¡°Yes father.¡± Lord Tafei stepped forward and said. ¡°He is going to save our tribe presumably. Hopefully¡­ he will be able to succeed and that we will be able to trust him.¡±

    ¡°I see¡­¡± The man paused for a moment and spoke again. ¡°If he is able to heal Great Priest Bambe then immediately bring him to me. I¡­ won¡¯t be able to hold for much longer.¡± He said hoarsely.

    ¡°Yes father. I will oblige to your wishes.¡± Lord Tafei said.

    Outside of the cave Akata and Tabet were walking along in the trees. Tabet was going on and on about what he planned to do with Akata.

    Before long, Akata eventually cut him off and spoke. ¡°Hey Tabet, how old are you and what¡¯s your cultivation base?¡± He suddenly asked.

    Tabet paused for a moment with surprise. He wasn¡¯t expecting Akata to speak back. ¡°Hehe. I¡¯m 17 years old and I¡¯m at the Great Circle of the Docile Rank. Soon I¡¯ll be in the Beast Rank, especially now that I¡¯m no longer poisoned. Hehe. All thanks to you.¡±

    Akata was surprised at this. Tabet was just a bit older than himself, yet he was already at the Great Circle of his Rank. He would soon be in a whole new Rank and be able to dominate everything below him.

    ¡°How come the foreign life force didn¡¯t affect you as much as the other beasts of the younger generation?¡± Akata was puzzled by this as soon as he saw the other members of his tribe. Tabet was way better off than the other members of his tribe.

    ¡°Oh. Well nobody knew at first why that was, not even I did. I just made guesses as to why. But after you found out that it was life force invading us it became clear. That¡¯s because my talent was better than them. Since I was able to advance in cultivation faster than the others, I could gain a much more stronger life force of my own to combat the plant cultivator¡¯s.¡± He said simply.

    Akata nodded his head. This made a lot of sense actually. ¡°Well if it doesn¡¯t bother you¡­ then can we start with learning about runes then?¡± This was what Akata truly wanted to know about badly. If he could learn to control the runes within him then he felt as if his battle prowess would increase by leaps and bounds.

    ¡°Ah! Sure. I was wondering what I should start with for you. I didn¡¯t know if it should be cultivation in order to better strengthen you. Or runes, because that¡¯s what you are driven for. But you know better than me what you want to do. I should have asked you to begin with haha.¡± Tabet turned into his human form.

    He stopped and then looked at Akata with a wide grin. He immediately went straight into explaining runes. ¡°Runes. They are characters used to create and use magic. Just like different incantation gestures or different spells invoke different possibilities, so can the different runes.

    Runes are the essence of magic. They show the original makeup of magic and the beginning of it. Before there was magic there were runes. Magic was made from people watching runes as a matter of fact.

    Basically you can see it as magic being more modern and runes being of ancient descent. In that case many people think that magic is much more better than runes but that is not the case. Magic can be cast faster than runes but runes can have much more versatility.¡± Tabet said clearly.

    ¡°What about their power? Which one has more power than the other?¡± Akata asked.

    ¡°It just depends on who is using it and what spell that are trying to evoke. A person can have more skill in runes than magic and therefore be more powerful in that regard. And it can be the other way around as well.¡± Tabet said kindly, internally praising how Akata was paying attention to him.

    ¡°Now to the most important part. Creating and using runes.¡± Tabet waved his hand in the air and a green rune appeared in the air. The rune dazzled in the air as it hung there. It gave off a small amount of pressure that seemed in tune with nature.

    ¡°This¡­ is a rune right? What can it do?¡± Akata was amazed at the sight of the rune. Internally, however, he was displeased at how basic it was. The runes inside of him were much more complex and brought much more pressure with them.

    ¡°This is a rune! And what a rune looks like depends on what you want it to do and how skilled you are in making runes. The rune I just made is used to make wood, hence it is a green rune. Wood.¡± Tabet spoke and the rune expanded and formed into a branch.

    He waved his hand around sending the branch swirling through the air. The branch twisted and turned giving it a weird feel. His control over wood seemed to be on a level that only came with understanding and countless years of studying.

    ¡°My understanding of wood has led me to be able to control wood runes better. First thing we need to do for you is to find out what element you align with best.¡± Tabet smiled and waved his hand once more, having the branch revert back into a rune and then disappear. ¡°Let¡¯s get started then shall we?¡±

 Chapter 53: Runes and Elements

    ¡°Shouldn¡¯t we start by, I don¡¯t know, learning to create a rune first? How would learning what element I¡¯m aligned to help me? Wouldn¡¯t I end up learning all of the elements later anyways?¡± Akata was confused. He really just wanted to learn how to create runes so that he can learn more about his internal runes.

    Tabet wasn¡¯t displeased by Akata¡¯s question at all. In fact he seemed pleased by it. ¡°I was hoping you would ask that hehe. You see, like I said before runes are made by what you want them to do and how skilled you are. So in order to make a rune you will first have to align it with an element.¡±

    ¡°So an element like fire or water?¡± Akata asked.

    ¡°Well not necessarily. Elements can essentially be anything that is used to evoke spells. It can be fire, water, wood, illusions, light, etc. Pretty much anything. Since elements make the core of runes then to make a rune you will have to use an element. And let¡¯s say you make a rune that uses a wood element but you aren¡¯t skilled in wood at all, then you won¡¯t be able form that rune. And by that logic we will have to constantly have you perform different runes in order to find out what you are skilled at. That is why it is easier to find out what element you are skilled in first.¡± Tabet said with utter confidence.

    Akata now had a better understanding of how runes and elements worked. It wouldn¡¯t make sense for him to keep making different runes in order to find out what element he was more skilled in.

    ¡°Now, to find out what element you have more skill in we have to perform a test. It¡¯s a simple test.¡± Tabet waved his hand and made a green rune appear. He then pointed to the rune and it spun rapidly until it lost all of its luster and color. It didn¡¯t produce any pressure and felt empty inside.

    ¡°This is a rune without any element.¡± Tabet saw that Akata was about to ask something but he cut him off and continued speaking. ¡°Now I know what you¡¯re about to say. How can I make a rune without an element if I just said you can¡¯t make a rune without one. Well what I said was true.

    I just made a wood rune and took the wood core out of it. This made it into a rune without an element. Remember, you can¡¯t make a rune without anything to serve as the base, but you can take the core out of something that is already made.¡± Tabet smiled towards Akata. He saw that Akata¡¯s face became one of understanding once again.

    ¡°To test what element you are aligned to, you have to imprint you own core into the empty rune. To do that just apply some of your cultivation base power to it.¡± Tabet smiled once again.

    ¡°That¡¯s it? Just some cultivation base power?¡± Akata stretched his hand out toward the rune and applied some of his cultivation base power. The rune glowed between bright and dim for a moment. All of a sudden it flashed with a multitude of colors, going from purple to red to charcoal to more. All of these colors and more flashed by in the blink of an eye and then stopped on crimson.

    Tabet¡¯s eyes flashed with wonder and utter shock. This was something he had never seen before in his life. It was something he had only heard about in stories told to him. Having multiple colors flash in this test was normal, the more colors that flashed the more talented one was seen with the final color being the strongest. He himself had four colors flash for his rune before it stopped on green.

    ¡°What does this mean?¡± He muttered softly to himself. ¡°He landed on an outer element. I¡¯ve only heard of this happening before with my grandfather.¡± Tabet was shocked to the point he couldn¡¯t move or speak.

    ¡°Is that normal? What does that mean?¡± Akata could see the shock on Tabet¡¯s face.This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

    ¡°Ah! Sorry sorry. I forgot to explain what was going to happen. You see, during the test the rune will flash with colors. The more colors that flash the more talented you are seen as. And the final color to flash will be your strongest. Your color finished on crimson which is an outer element.

    There are two types of elements in nature. They are inner and outer elements. Inner elements are normal elements such as air, wood, or blood. But¡­ outer elements¡­ they are on a whole different level.¡± Tabet was simply amazed and in wonder.

    ¡°What¡¯s so special about outer elements then? What can they be used for? And what does the crimson color stand for?¡± Akata asked.

    ¡°Relax relax. I¡¯ll get to it don¡¯t worry. Outer elements are special because they are blessed and cursed by the energy of heaven and hell. The user of the element will therefore also be blessed and cursed by the energy of heaven and hell and will cultivate much faster than others. There are some other things but I¡¯m not too sure about them. Hehe. But anyways, the crimson color is the element of the soul.¡±

    ¡°The¡­ soul¡­ Well ok then¡­ And the soul element can do what exactly?¡± Akata said sounding disinterested.

    ¡°The outer elements are made up of pairs. For each curse of hell there is a blessing of heaven. Crimson is the color for the element of the soul and it pairs with violet, which is-¡±

    Akata¡¯s eyes went wide. ¡°The color of chaos! So my power can combat the power of chaos or does that mean I can learn the power of chaos?¡± The way Akata saw it, either way would be worthwhile. It meant he could wield power that could match chaos. That was a supreme power amongst even the heavens.

    ¡°PRECISELY! The color of chaos!¡± Tabet wasn¡¯t discouraged at all. He was just as enthusiastic as Akata was as if he had gotten the color of crimson. ¡°An again¡­ I¡¯m not too sure about the power of the outer elements. I don¡¯t know if you can train using the chaos element or if it is incompatible, but I do know that it is on the same level as chaos.¡± Tabet said with a wide grin.

    ¡°Ah! Now that we have found what elements you are more skilled in then let¡¯s get started with creating runes. Since I¡¯m nowhere near skilled enough with outer elements I won¡¯t be able to help you there.¡± Tabet said with clear disappointment. ¡°But maybe my grandfather will be able to help you out! If you can heal him I¡¯m sure he will be happy to help you.¡±

    At first Akata was highly discouraged about the fact that he couldn¡¯t learn about using the soul element but then his eyes began to gleam. He then nodded his head in agreement.

    ¡®If I can heal his grandfather I will of course be able to learn more about these outer elements. Well I can be patient for now. I¡¯ll be able to set my foundation with runes and become accustomed to them. If I start off big I might cause some repercussions anyway.¡¯ Akata tried to console himself.

    ¡°So how do we get started on creating runes? Is it some kind of long process of learning or perhaps I have to embed something into me?¡± Akata asked curiously.

    ¡°Mm¡­ nope. Just focus on the element that you want to use and turn that element into a core. Each element has their own design that is used to make a core for the rune so to make the core you need to know the design of the element.

    For the brief moment that your colors flashed I noticed that you had a purple illusion element. I also have one and know a basic design for a core.¡± Tabet waved his hand in the air again and a purple rune appeared in the air.

    He pointed at the rune and the rune separated apart. A piece of the rune glowed brighter than the rest and flew out to hang in front of Akata. That piece of rune was a deep purple that flickered between illusory and tangibility.

    ¡°Study this design and focus on the illusion element within you. Then once you have imprinted the image within you, you should be able to just create a rune. It¡¯s that simple. Of course creating more complex runes requires more effort, but you can worry about that after you get the applications of runes.¡± Tabet said. He then turned back into a red furred tiger and walked to a tree and started studying it.

    ¡®So just focus on the illusion element within me? And copy the design? That¡¯s all I have to do then? I thought it would be way much more work.¡¯ Akata sat down cross legged and began to focus on the design in front of him.

    The design was simple. It resembled a sun that also looked like a moon but was hidden within the clouds that also looked like waves. The design looked simple but had a hidden meaning within it that Akata couldn¡¯t figure out. He focused all of his attention on engraving the image into his mind.

    It didn¡¯t take long at all to do this and Akata was done in few minutes. After that he closed his eyes and searched for the element of illusions. ¡®What is an element supposed to feel or look like? I haven¡¯t felt anything different about my body that made it seem like I had something else within me.¡¯ Akata frowned while he was searching for the element.

    Finally he gave a long sigh and opened his eyes. He looked at Tabet and gave another long sigh. ¡°What is an element supposed to feel like?! I don¡¯t have any idea what this illusion element is supposed to be and how am I supposed to make it into a core?¡±

    Tabet turned from the tree and thought for a moment. ¡°An illusion is there yet it is not there. That is what you are supposed to feel. Just like if you were trying to find a fire element. You wouldn¡¯t find it in the middle of a lake?¡± He then turned back to the tree and no longer spoke.

 Chapter 54: Outer Element Struggles

    Akata sat there, confused as ever. ¡®I¡¯m supposed to feel being here yet not here. Be illusory and be tangible. What? Does he think I¡¯m one of those Illusory Phoenix Lilies?¡¯ Akata thought for a moment and his eyes went wide.

    Akata reached into his bag of holding and pulled out a small flower that was bright orange and had the glow of the sun. The flower brought a boundless amount of life force in the area. When he held it in his hand it felt like it wasn¡¯t there at times and other times it felt like it was.

    ¡®Flickering between illusory and tangibility. Is this what illusions are supposed to be like? In its illusion state it¡¯s almost like a false image being displayed. But how am I supposed to find this illusion within me?¡¯ Akata thought for a moment.

    ¡°Ah! I¡¯m a plant cultivator now, so can¡¯t I just copy what Peizhi Xiuying did?¡¯ Akata held the flower in his hand and started rotating his plant cultivation base. He then rotated his red rune and started to absorb the life of the Illusory Phoenix Lily.

    The suction came from the red rune and the power was given to his plant cultivation base. The Illusory Phoenix Lily quickly drained its color and lost all of its luster. Even after it felt completely drained, Akata felt that he was still missing something.

    ¡®Something isn¡¯t right. Even after draining it completely I haven¡¯t found the element of illusion yet.¡¯ Akata frowned and then a memory came to him. ¡®Wait, there should still be a spark in this flower.¡¯ Akata rotated his red rune once more along with his plant cultivation base. He put the full force of his cultivation base on display. He washed his nature sense over the flower to search for the remaining spark within it.

    He searched frantically for that spark. Right in this moment, he felt more in tune with nature than he had ever been before. His mind, body, and soul were all calm and connected with nature at this point in time.

    Finally after a bit of effort he saw a bright orange spark deep within the flower. It would be undetectable to anyone who wasn¡¯t a plant cultivator or wasn¡¯t experienced with plants. And with that spark the Illusory Phoenix Lily wouldn¡¯t die at all.

    Akata¡¯s red rune rotated and focused in on the spark that was in the flower. The spark didn¡¯t have a chance since it was being directly targeted now. The spark was quickly absorbed by the red rune and refined it into a usable substance for Akata. The spark¡¯s energy was then sent to his plant cultivation base in his dantion region. It flew to the sprout that was in his dantion region and was absorbed inside of it. The sprout trembled vigorously and and glowed with an intense orange light. The sprout flickered between illusory and tangibility as the aura it produced became stronger.

    All of a sudden a blast of energy exploded out of the sprout as it grew to three inches. The original white sprout now had a hint of orange in it. The life force it now had was much more bountiful.

    ¡®3rd Grade of the Seed Rank. Not bad¡­ not bad at all. And the life force from that Illusory Phoenix Lily seems to have a much greater effect than I thought it would. I feel much more lively than I ever had.¡¯ Akata was pleased with his efforts.

    He sat in meditation focusing in on his plant cultivation base. This was where the illusionary spark of the Illusory Phoenix Lily had been placed. Akata watched as the sprout in his dantion region kept turning illusory and back. Now that Akata could feel the effect within him, it made it much clearer to know how to put the skill into effect.

    ¡®So that¡¯s how things are.¡¯ Akata smiled. Akata waved his hand in the air causing his cultivation base power to erupt out. His sprout slightly shook as he evoked the element of illusions and mixed it in with his cultivation base power. He then thought of the image of the sun and moon that was within the clouds and waves and recreated it.

    The image appeared in the air along with the power of the element of illusion. The image was a dim purple, almost on the verge of blinking out. But, almost as soon as it appeared, it blasted out. The blast sent Akata flying backward. He wasn¡¯t prepared for the blast and therefore was sent flying about a meter.The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

    ¡°Ah! What was that? I thought that I had it perfectly. Did I do something wrong?¡± Akata looked toward Tabet and asked, clearly quite flustered.

    ¡°Haha! Yeah, your core was all wrong and the element of illusion was barely there as well. You¡¯re not going to get it in one day, it takes practice to get used to creating runes. Give it a few more weeks and maybe you¡¯ll be able to have the rune last for a moment before blowing up.¡± Tabet laughed away as he saw the look on Akata¡¯s face.

    Akata¡¯s eye twitched as he listened to Tabet laugh away. He thought this was going to be an easy task to accomplish, but in fact it wasn¡¯t. He first had to familiarize himself with runes and then become adept enough to use them without any problem.

    Akata shook his head and focused his mind again. No longer paying attention to Tabet, he readjusted himself. He thought of the image of the sun and moon and infused the image with the element of illusions. He waved his hand to produce the image infused rune and a dim purple light sprang out.

    Boom!

    The image once again blowed up almost as soon as it appeared. Akata was much more prepared for this to happen as he wasn¡¯t pushed back from the explosion. His eyes showed brightly as he attempted it again and then again. He continued continuously as he struggled relentlessly to keep the rune from blowing up.

    Bang! Bang! Boom!

    Even after half a day of continuously creating runes, Akata wasn¡¯t able to hold the rune for even a second. His eyes were bloodshot as he created rune after rune. His robes were tattered, from all the explosions, to the point that his body was barely being covered.

    ¡®What am I doing wrong? Could I have messed the image up? Or maybe my cultivation base isn¡¯t high enough.¡¯ Akata was getting frustrated the more he didn¡¯t succeed in keeping the core of the rune from blowing up.

    After a few more hours he let out a long disheartening sigh. ¡°UUGH! Why is this so impossible? This can¡¯t be right, I feel like I¡¯m getting nowhere with this. Even after practicing with this for over half the day I can¡¯t keep the core from blowing in my face. How do you do it?¡±

    ¡°Umm¡­ I just do it I guess. It¡¯s not that hard actually; it just takes time to get used to controlling the rune. Balancing the power of the core and the element just takes practice. Just keep at it and you will eventually get the hang of it.¡± Tabet saif with a light smile on his face.

    Akata gave him a fierce glare. Then he simply turned his head and gave a harrumph. He closed his eyes and focused solely on understanding the illusion element within him. ¡®He said to balance the power of the core and the element. Well my element seems to be normal, but this core seems weak when compared to it. So to keep it balanced I should either weaken my illusion power or make a better core image.

    Making a better core image would be the more plausible thing to do given that I want the most power, but I don¡¯t know how to make a better one. And I don¡¯t want to ask for another core image either. But decreasing the power of my illusion element will also be hard to do.¡¯

    Akata had more skill in the element of souls, which is an outer element. Since he had a more innate skill in outer elements, his skill in inner elements was boosted as well.

    It was like if you were skilled in the sword you would be powerful. But even if you had to use a stick, you would still have the knowledge of using a sword and will still be able to make it a strong weapon.

    The same concept applied to elements but on an innate level. The stronger your main element, the stronger all the other elements you learn will be.

    Thus trying to weaken an element that was naturally strong was a hard thing to do. Akata would have to bring the power of the element down to a level that he had never used before. It would be especially hard seeing as he had just learned the element of illusions. But he was in a rush and therefore wanted to get a grasp on it as fast as possible.

    ¡®I only have two months on this island. I have to learn all I can within these two months, but if I can¡¯t get past this then I can¡¯t learn anything else. So I have to learn to balance the core image and the power of the element as soon as possible.¡¯ Akata felt flustered to an extreme degree.

    Akata calmed his mind and tried to rethink what he should do. After a bit of time his eyes filled with decisiveness. ¡®Well I¡¯m not aiming to be weak so I will figure out how to make a better core image. One that will match or even surpass the level of power of my illusion element.¡¯

    ¡°Tabet. How can I make my own core image? Can you teach me how to do that?¡± Akata asked, his voice filled with determination. He wasn¡¯t going to go back on his choice of making his own core image to get stronger.

    ¡°Make your own core image?¡± Tabet was extremely surprised. Didn¡¯t Akata just get into runes. He was still on the process of balancing the power. How could he want to make a core image now? ¡°Are you sure you want to make a core image now? It would be better to learn how to balance the power you have now.¡± Taber tried to dissuade him.

    ¡°No thanks. I feel that I have to make my own core image in order for me to get an idea of balancing my power.¡± Akata said.

    Tabet thought for a moment about how Akata had skill in an outer element. ¡®Maybe this is because he has an outer element skill. Could his power in runes be higher than others?¡¯ He thought for a moment.

    He nodded his head toward Akata. ¡°Okay you can make a core image, but I can¡¯t teach you. Not because I¡¯m not allowed to but because I don¡¯t know how. The only ones that knows how to is my father and my grandfather. Only once I reach the Beast Rank will I be able to learn how to. So you have to ask my father about that.¡±

    Akata nodded his head. ¡°When I fully recover can you take me to your father then?¡±

    ¡°Yeah sure.¡± Tabet replied. In his eyes a bit of hope could be seen.

    Akata nodded his head once more then closed his eyes. He was seated cross legged and began to replenish his energy.

 Chapter 55: Letâ€™s Race

    Akata rushed his recovery. Although he had spent a bit of time trying to use the core image and infuse it with his element, it didn¡¯t take much out of him. He could afford to rush his recovery. He was fully recovered in about an hour.

    Akata opened his eyes and stood up. ¡°I¡¯m ready to go now.¡± He said calmly, yet he couldn¡¯t hide the eagerness in his voice.

    Tabet looked at Akata and then said, ¡°Aren¡¯t your clothes a bit tattered? Your body is barely being covered up?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s no matter. They¡¯re just clothes after all, I can get some more or even go without for now. The most important thing for me to worry about right now is preparing to heal your father. Clothes are the least most important thing to me as of this moment.¡± Akata simply replied.

    ¡°No no no. You don¡¯t understand. My mother doesn¡¯t like the idea of being naked. She finds it utterly disgusting. You either have to be covered in fur or completely clothed. You have to have something covering you before we head to my father.¡± Tabet urgently spoke.

    ¡°Uhh¡­ ok then. Well where am I supposed to get some clothes then? I don¡¯t have any extra clothes on me right now so I won¡¯t be able to be covered.¡± Akata was confused but tried to comply nonetheless.

    Tabet thought for a moment before raising his head up with an idea in mind. ¡°Ah! You can use some of my furs if you would like.¡±

    Akata¡¯s eyes went wide. Usually when someone wore furs, it came from a beast that was slain. But then he calmed his mind as he saw Tabet¡¯s fur increase in size dramatically. He instantly became a ball of red hair as his fur grew to a shocking degree.

    The fur then shed to the ground in a large heap. Tabet was barely covered in fur, to the point that his pink skin could be seen underneath. But then his fur grew again until he looked like his regular self once more.

    ¡°Ah. There we go. You can use this fur. I never thought that this technique my mother taught me would come in handy one day. She originally wanted me to use it, in case my fur fell from my body, but who would¡¯ve thought I would use it to give fur to a human. Haha!¡± Tabet laughed as looked at all the fur on the ground.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know how you can make clothes out of this though so it will be up to you to do it.¡± Tabet looked at Akata and said.

    ¡°Mn.¡± Akata nodded his head. He walked over to the pile of red fur and looked closely at it. The fur was extremely thick and there was a lot of it. ¡°This is perfect.¡± Akata mumbled to himself.

    Akata took off his tattered robe. He then reached in his bag and pulled out a needle and some thread. After that he picked up some fur and then¡­ began to sew. He sewed the fur onto the tattered robe that he had. His strokes were smooth and fluid as he sewed the thick red fur onto the robe. He was immersed in his movements as he focused completely on the needle and thread.

    ¡°What are you doing? You¡¯re attaching my fur onto that robe? Even though that robe looks completely destroyed you¡¯re making it look completely different now.¡± Tabet was amazed at what Akata was doing right now.

    ¡°I¡¯m tailoring right now. I taught myself how to do it in order to pass the time since I wasn¡¯t able to fight others. Eventually I got skilled in it. In fact, I found out that I really like making things and repairing stuff. I looked into blacksmithing but I¡¯m not that skilled in it. And the art of enchanting really interests me. I hope that I can learn that one day too.¡±

    Akata¡¯s swift and agile hand movements continued even while he was talking. His skill in tailoring really was superb. It was at the skill level of an expert tailor who had been tailoring for many many years. In a bit of time he had completely remade his robe.You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

    It was now a two piece fur robe. The top half was made into a cape. The cape was able to cover everything except one arm that remained visible. Of course this is what Akata wanted though. The bottom half was made into some short pants. His outfit was completely red in color and made him look like a demon beast.

    It only took Akata about two hours to make some new clothes for himself. He put the needle and thread back into his bag and stood up once more. He put on the cape and pants and looked at Tabet. ¡°Ok. Now I¡¯m ready to go.¡± He said with a smile.

    Tabet was still dazed and amazed by Akata¡¯s skill in tailoring. It was something that he found utterly awesome. ¡°Could you teach me how to do that?!¡± He yelled.

    Akata was taken aback some but then soon recovered. ¡°Uh¡­ sure why not. It¡¯s not that hard.¡± He said with some surprise. He was surprised by the fact that a beast wanted to learn how to tailor. Most humans didn¡¯t even want to learn.

    ¡°Great! Well let¡¯s get to my father now. It¡¯s already dark but I can still see well and I know my way around here. No other beast is on the island so you¡¯re safe but I¡¯d rather not be slow. So keep up.¡± Tabet was extremely happy and he rushed away soon disappearing into the distance.

    ¡°Ah!¡± Akata rotated his cultivation base and ran after Tabet. He spread his nature sense out and quickly located Tabet. Even though Tabet was fast, he was still well in the range of Akata¡¯s nature sense.

    Akata ran just about full speed ahead but still couldn¡¯t catch up to Tabet. He grumbled inwardly, ¡®So he thinks he¡¯s faster than me eh? Well we¡¯ll see about that.¡¯ He activated his Shadowfeet skill and his speed abruptly increased in a staggering degree. That wasn¡¯t it, as he rotated his mortal cultivation base. Again his speed jumped up explosively.

    In a few breaths of time Akata closed the gap between himself and Tabet and was right behind him. The explosive increase in speed of Akata made Tabet shocked for a moment. He had gone fast enough to get where he was going soon, but slow enough that Akata could keep track of him. He had never expected Akata to have such speed.

    ¡®His speed should be comparable to the 7th Grade. But even still it isn¡¯t nearly as fast as I am. I don¡¯t even have to use my cultivation base to utterly surpass him in speed.¡¯ Tabet chuckled a bit and let Akata catch up to him.

    Akata caught up to Tabet in the blink of an eye. He slowed down and ran alongside Tabet eyeing him. ¡°Your speed isn¡¯t that great. Especially for the level of your cultivation base.¡± He yelled out to Tabet.

    Tabet chuckled again, this time Akata heard it and frowned. ¡°What¡¯s so funny eh? Do you think you are faster than me? How about we race then?¡±

    ¡°You want to race? It would be unfair to go full speed considering my cultivation base, but the idea sounds amusing to me so I¡¯ll accept. I won¡¯t go at my full speed though hehe. How does that sound?¡± Tabet laughed out.

    ¡°Humph. I¡¯ll beat you in the end. Let¡¯s go!¡± Akata turned into a shadow as he sped off into the distance. Quickly creating a gap between the two.

    Tabet simply smiled and sped up as well. The gap between Akata and himself was about thirty meters but he easily surpassed Akata in the blink of an eye. He was in the Great Circle of the Docile Rank so his normal speed was leagues faster than Akata. He quickly passed by Akata and left him behind.

    Akata¡¯s right eye twitched and he started to rotate his plant cultivation base alongside his mortal cultivation base. This allowed Akata to stack the speed of both cultivation bases on top of each other. His speed jumped ahead by bounds. He started to close in on Tabet.

    When Tabet saw this he was surprised and his face turned serious. ¡®That wasn¡¯t his full speed before?¡¯ He didn¡¯t want to use his actual speed but if Akata kept on increasing he would have to, to save his own face. He burst forth with a newfound speed that was utterly astonishing. He seemed to merge into the dark jungle as his speed reached new heights.

    ¡®His speed is so fast. Is this what the speed of someone at the Great Circle can unleash? And he seems to be infusing the element of illusion into his movement¡­ so he¡¯s trying to make me lose him. Heh.¡¯ A smile widened across Akata¡¯s face. ¡®My nature sense can keep track of him easily. As for his speed, I think I can handle it. I didn¡¯t know that I could use both cultivation bases at the same time so I can use the speed burst from both of them.¡¯

    Akata¡¯s crimson eyes seemed to have dim down as they grew dark and cloudy. ¡®Merge with the shadows. Blend in with the dark. Counter the speed of light with the speed of darkness.¡¯ Akata completely transformed into a shadowy figure as he mixed in with the dark of the night. His body looked like a mist as it flitted across the trees.

    That wasn¡¯t it as he rotated both his mortal and plant cultivation base at full speed. His speed jumped up once again. Before this point Akata could be considered the fastest person at the 4th Grade but now he utterly crushed that speed. He was using his full speed as of now and was quickly approaching Tabet.

    Tabet saw Akata increase his speed explosively once again and his eyes went wide. ¡®This speed should only be possible for someone at the 9th Grade! And my illusion element with my speed isn¡¯t even able to confuse him. How in the hell is he able to do this? Is it because he is also a plant cultivator.¡¯ Tabet was instantly flustered.

    Tabet sighed and finally let loose. He was going to use his full speed now. Akata was looking directly at him right now as he had caught up, but then Tabet just disappeared.

    ¡°Huh? Where did he go?¡± Akata was surprised and murmured to himself.

    ¡°Right here.¡± A whisper sounded in Akata¡¯s ear surprising him. He turned his head to see nothing. He stretched his nature sense out and his eyes went completely wide with disbelief.

    ¡°Wha¡­ how?¡± Akata said.

 Chapter 56: Healing Great Priest Bambe

    When Akata stretched his nature senese out he saw something unbelievable. Tabet looked to be in multiple places at once. But he knew this wasn¡¯t the case at all.

    ¡°This is his speed? Why is it so fast? I can¡¯t even manage to lock his location down with my nature sense. He¡¯s literally going to fast for me to comprehend at the moment. Is this the speed of someone at the Great Circle? It¡¯s way too fast!¡± Akata was too surprised at what his nature sense picked up.

    In his nature sense he could see many figures zipping around making it look like there were multiple figures of Tabet going around. It was an astonishing sight to see. It was too amazing that Akata even found some enlightenment in it.

    ¡°You won¡­ But don¡¯t think this will be the last race that we will have. I will beat you eventually! Akata yelled out. Of course he couldn¡¯t accept losing but there was nothing he could do. He was outclassed by a large margin. The difference between their speeds was like the distance between Heaven and Earth.

    Tabet flashed to a stop in front of Akata. He had a smile on his face as he approached him. ¡°I¡¯m amazed by your speed it is definitely fast for someone at your level. It has to be at least at the 9th Grade to unleash. I actually was getting frightened that you would catch up so I went my full speed. Haha¡± Tabet laughed out.

    Akata had a frown on his face. ¡°You said that you wouldn¡¯t go your full speed though. Of course you would win. Humph.¡± He was slightly frustrated.

    ¡°Ah. I technically went full speed but at the same time I didn¡¯t. I just used the full speed that my body would allow. I didn¡¯t use any techniques or anything of the sort.¡± Tabet was still laughing out.

    Akata¡¯s left eye twitched with bitter frustration. In his mind however he was shocked. Tabet¡¯s body alone was able to utterly defeat him in a race. Just how fast would he be if he were to use his cultivation base and other techniques?

    Akata let out a long breath and sighed. ¡°Well whatever. We should get going to your father.¡± Akata didn¡¯t feel like keeping his mind on the race.

    ¡°Oh. We¡¯re already here though. It¡¯s about 30 meters over there.¡± Tabet pointed out in the distance where a cave entrance could be seen just below the trees.

    Tabet led Akata toward the cave entrance. Along the way Akata still had the image of Tabet¡¯s speed in his nature sense constantly replaying. He was able to see every little movement and remember it. This was because of his immense mental energy.

    As he watched Tabet¡¯s movements play out Akata felt that his own movements could be improved greatly. ¡®It¡¯s almost like there were many copies of him going around at the same time. Each of those copies were identical in every way. It¡¯s really hard to believe that he was just using his body to unleash that speed.¡¯ Akata was simply in awe of Tabet¡¯s movement.

    Tabet was in the lead. His smile was still on his face as he walked to the entrance. ¡®Of course that wasn¡¯t just my body speed. My body isn¡¯t that strong to unleash that level of speed. I unconsciously used my cultivation base and infused the elements of air and illusions into my speed. He won¡¯t know that though, he¡¯ll just keep on thinking that it was my superb body. Hehe.¡¯ He was secretly very content with himself even though he knew he had cheated.

    After a bit of time the two made it into the cave with all the other Scarlet Tiger¡¯s. Tabet led Akata to the chamber that his father, mother, and other leaders of the tribe were at. Tabet protected Akata from the intense pressure that was in the room.

    He was led into the room where he saw the same five beasts lying down. Lord Tafei raised his head and looked straight at Akata. He nodded his head and then said, ¡°Does this mean you are ready to start healing us then?¡± His voice boomed and filled Akata¡¯s ears.

    Akata nodded his own head and said. ¡°Yes Lord Tafei I¡¯m ready to start healing you all.¡± Akata was respectful towards him. It wasn¡¯t that he cared about courtesy but the pressure in the room made him want to be respectful.

    ¡°Good. As planned you will heal Great Priest Bambe first. If you are successful then you can heal the rest of us. I hope that you are successful. You may use the secluded room to do your healings. Lady Haque, could you watch over them?¡± Lord Tafei spoke.

    ¡°I will.¡± Lady Haque stood up from her position and strode forth toward Akata. ¡°We will head out immediately and start the healing procedure. I am curious myself as to how you do this young Akata.¡± Her voice carried a soft tone to it.If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

    Akata nodded his head. He then followed behind her as she walked toward the passageway back to the main room of the tribe. When they got to the room she called on Great Priest Bambe. ¡°Great Priest Bambe, we are ready for you to be healed.¡± She said softly.

    The Scarlet Tiger¡¯s were unaware of her presence until she spoke. When she did, all the Scarlet Tiger¡¯s became quiet and bowed their heads toward her. Then they all spoke in unison, ¡°Greetings Lady Haque.¡± It was a beautiful scene for Akata to see.

    Great Priest Bambe stood up from a group of Scarlet Tigers and walked over peacefully. ¡°Is it time for young Akata here to heal me then?¡± He spoke in a respectful manner.

    ¡°Yes, you are correct. We will be heading to the secluded room now. If you would, please follow us.¡± She said slowly.

    Lady Haque and Great Priest Bambe walked side by side in the lead with Akata following them. Although they weren¡¯t emitting it on purpose, the pressure they displayed was overwhelming to Akata. On multiple occasions he felt like he was going to be crushed.

    Soon they were in the room, just the three of them. Great Priest Bambe strode forward to the center of the room and sat down. Lady Haque walked over to the side spectating everything. She wouldn¡¯t say a word or interfere with anything that was about to happen.

    Akata walked over to Great Priest Bambe. ¡°I¡¯ll need for you not to resist at all.¡± Akata said calmly. He sat down cross legged in front of Great Priest Bambe and closed his eyes. ¡°I¡¯m going to have my nature sense wash over you to inspect the life force now.¡± He said and then became quiet.

    Nature energy quickly converged in the area and spread out toward Great Priest Bambe. Akata directed it to flow into his body inspect the foreign life force. He searched thoroughly making mental notes of what he saw and how he should handle it.

    After about half and hour of looking through Great Priest Bambe¡¯s body Akata retracted the nature energy. He took a deep breath and opened his eyes. ¡®I can do this!¡¯ He mused to himself.

    ¡°You have much more life force within you than the younger generation and it is also deeper in your system. But, I should be able to take it away. I¡¯ll begin with the healing process now.¡± Akata closed his eyes once more and began to focus.

    He didn¡¯t want anyone to question him right now so he went straight to work. ¡®There is much more life force in the older generation than the younger one. If I can absorb it all then I can definitely raise my cultivation level.¡¯

    Akata spread out his nature energy and once again washed over Great Priest Bambe¡¯s body. This time he went on the attack. His nature energy was like a flood, the way it invaded Great Priest Bambe¡¯s body.

    The foreign life force of the plant cultivator had invaded the soul, cultivation base, and dantion region of Great Priest Bambe therefore Akata had to spend a lot more effort in healing him. He had to ce extremely careful in dealing with this life force. Though Akata couldn¡¯t cause any serious or lasting damage to Great Priest Bambe, he wanted the practice so he would be ready for his next patient.

    ¡®Hm. Maybe I should be a doctor when I get older. Helping people isn¡¯t that bad.¡¯ Akata thought to himself. He continued to absorb the life force at a slow pace. First was the dantion region where he took in an abundant amount of life force. Then was the cultivation base where it became a bit tricky but Akata could still handle it. Next was the soul region.

    The soul region contained the soul. It was an important part of the body of any living creature. Without it, the creature just couldn¡¯t survive. ¡®Eh? What¡¯s wrong with his soul?¡¯ Akata came in contact with his soul and found something strange.

    He backed his nature energy away and opened his eyes. He turned to look at Lady Haque. ¡°Lady Haque, why is it that Great Priest Bambe has two souls? They aren¡¯t different and look to be one and the same, but they are definitely two souls. It¡¯s like one is inside the other.¡± Akata was very confused.

    ¡°Oh!¡± At first Lady Haque was confused but as Akata kept explaining she instantly knew what he meant. ¡°You¡¯re looking at his spiritual soul and physical soul. Everyone has those two souls. These two souls are basically one in the same as without one you will technically be dead. The physical soul brings the body life. But, if it is destroyed you will be sent to be reborn.

    The spiritual soul brings everlasting life. It is the soul that is sent to the river of reincarnation to be reborn. With this soul a living being can still live in their next life. That is why sometimes it is called the true soul. However if it is destroyed, then that living being can no longer be reborn and will forever be dead.¡± She spoke briefly about the souls to Akata.

    Akata nodded his head in understanding. He had no idea about this. He couldn¡¯t even tell his souls apart. But he could with Great Priest Bambe because his soul was much stronger than Akata¡¯s.

    He turned back to Great Priest Bambe and closed his eyes again. He sent his nature energy out and surrounded the soul. He transformed his nature energy into little wisps and sent it into the soul. The tiny wisps streaked across the soul gathering and consuming the life force of the plant cultivator.

    Even though it seemed like Akata was doing the healing rather quickly in truth he had already spent more than two hours cleaning out the dantion region, to say nothing of the rest of Great Priest Bambe¡¯s body. Akata was meticulous with his work. Although he wasn¡¯t truly taking i seriously, he still had to put in a bit of real effort.

    By the time Akata finished absorbing the last of the foreign life force from the soul half a day had passed. Akata took in a deep breath and slowly breathed it out. Then he opened his eyes, a smile across his face. ¡®I¡¯ve made it to the 3rd Grade of the Seed Rank. I¡¯m improving faster in plant cultivation than I am in mortal cultivation.¡¯ Akata was extremely happy. He could sense the changes the Plant Realm gave him.

    ¡°All of the life force has been cleansed from your body Great Priest Bambe. It should take you no time at all to recover your full strength.¡± Akata said with a calm expression.

    ¡°Mn. Good work young Akata. I can definitely feel that a foreign existence has been taken out of my body. I don¡¯t know how to explain it. Almost like I was cleansed spiritually and am not burdened by anything. It is a wonderful feeling to say the least.¡± Great Priest Bambe praised Akata for his work.

    Lady Haque stood up from the side and walked over to Great Priest Bambe. ¡°What are your thoughts?¡± She asked.

    ¡°He has definitely done something. I could also feel his energy going around my body. Sometimes it would linger, other times it would flash by. I can tell that in key areas of my body that he was being careful. I can say that he really has healed me.¡± Great Priest Bambe told her.

    ¡°Good.¡± Lady Haque turned to Akata. ¡°Come with me will you.¡± She turned and headed back to the chamber with the rest of the Elders. Akata quickly got up and followed behind. Although he was tired he didn¡¯t let it show. Great Priest Bambe also followed them.

 Chapter 57: Iâ€™m Ready

    Lady Haque, Great Priest Bambe, and Akata soon arrived in the room with the Elders and Lord Tafei. Tabet was there also and he quickly made his way over to Akata.

    ¡°How did it go?¡± He asked curiously with anticipation.

    ¡°I took out all of the foreign life force that was in him. It was actually quite a bit inside of his body. His soul region and dantion region all had some. Although it took a while I managed to complete it.¡± Akata smiled.

    ¡°Haha. I knew that you could do it. My father actually wants to speak to you. I don¡¯t know what it¡¯s about but it has to be important.¡± Tabet said. He turned his head in his father¡¯s direction to see that he was talking to all the other Elders and that his mother and Great Priest Bambe were within the group. They couldn¡¯t hear a single sound from the group but from the looks of it some of them were yelling.

    Eventually they all dispersed and Lord Tafei strode forward and looked at Akata. ¡°I am grateful to you for healing our Great Priest and like we came to you will heal the rest of our Elders, but things have changed. You will now be healing my father first.¡± Lord Tafei turned his head toward Tabet. ¡°Tabet come here.¡±

    Both Tabet and Akata were shocked. Tabet was shocked that his grandfather was willing to be healed by a human. Akata was shocked that there was another powerful figure in this cave.

    Tabet walked toward his father where he was told something in private. Akata couldn¡¯t hear a word of their conversation. Eventually he saw Tabet nod his head and then Lord Tafei turned his head and looked at Akata.

    ¡°Akata it seems that you are having troubles with runes. Well like our deal said I will personally teach you about runes, but you also have an outer element which I am not that familiar with. Only my father has an outer element under his control. But if you are to heal him, maybe he will teach you a little of what he knows.¡± Lord Tafei felt somewhat down as he was speaking.

    Actually he felt down each time he spoke to Akata. How could he, someone who was the leader of this great tribe of his, try to bribe a young human? This felt like a shameful act to him. But all he could do was accept it. He truly wanted his tribe to be saved from calamity and this was the only way to do so.

    Akata bowed at the waist and said, ¡°I will try my best when healing your father, Lord Tafei.¡± He didn¡¯t think to act confident in the matter. He saw how complex the life force was embedded in the senior generation and it would be much more difficult to heal them than the younger generation.

    That, coupled with the fact that this powerful expert in front of him had a father, who was surely stronger than him, yet was in much worse condition, said how difficult the task of healing him would be.

    Lord Tafei nodded his head. ¡°Come here then. I will lead you to his chambers. Haque, you and the other Elder¡¯s stay here and make sure nobody comes close to my father¡¯s chambers. Tabet you come with me also.¡± Lord Tabet spoke seriously. He had a tinge of fear swelled up within him. This was a life or death matter for his father of course he would want things to be as safe as possible and that nothing would go wrong.

    Akata was led into a doorway that led to a chamber. Inside of the chamber he saw a beam of light shining in from a hole in the ceiling. The light was angelic and calm as it landed on a naked figure. When Akata looked at it descend upon the figure he felt as if he had to worship this supreme being.

    This feeling came instantly for Akata as his eyes landed on the figure. He could feel the inexhaustible power radiating from it as it sat there with its eyes closed. Even though Akata couldn¡¯t feel any pressure coming from this figure, do to him being protected by Lord Tafei, he could tell that this was a power that was unrivaled.Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more.

    It was a kind of power that he couldn¡¯t even comprehend himself. Akata couldn¡¯t even think about the level of power this figure had, let alone trying to figure out what this figure could do to him. Akata couldn¡¯t begin to imagine gaining this strength in the future.

    ¡®Jus¡­ Just what is this presence? All I did was look at him and it¡¯s causing me to lose control of myself. Is this what absolute strength is?¡¯ Akata¡¯s face was pale and cold sweat ran down his body as he came closer to the figure. Then another thought ran past Akata¡¯s mind.

    ¡®If they had a person this powerful in the tribe, then how were they forced out of their homes? Just what almighty expert could have the power to drive out this Scarlet Tiger?¡¯ Akata became even more frightened.

    ¡®If there are beasts this strong then I have a long way to go before I can be a match for them.¡¯ A strange gleam appeared within Akata¡¯s eyes. It didn¡¯t come from his impulse to fight but from his will to be strong, his promise to reach the pinnacle of strength. ¡®There are experts this strong, yet even he was put into a life threatening position due to the plant cultivator. Which means the plant cultivator was immensely much more powerful than him.

    There are levels of power that I can¡¯t begin to think about right now. Strength that far surpassed my own knowledge. If I am to uncover the secrets of this strength and reach the pinnacle then I must attain such strength.¡¯

    Even though he was thinking these things, his body was still trembling from the sight of the figure in front of his path. Akata looked over at Tabet and found that he was pretty much in the same situation that Akata was in.

    Tabet rarely visited his grandfather due to his grandfather needing to concentrate full time. Yet, even after those times of visiting, the pressure emanating from his grandfather still made him tremble. It was simply just an enormous pressure weighing down on everything.

    ¡°Father¡­ I have brought him here.¡± Lord Tafei said extremely respectfully. As he spoke he slightly bowed his head. Akata and Tabet immediately followed suit along with him. They followed along due to the respect they had for this figure. While Tabet had respect for familial reasons, Akata had respect for the powerful.

    The figure in the light slowly opened his eyes and looked out. His gaze seemed to pierce through the essence of anything his eyes landed on. He first looked at Tafei and nodded, then his eyes slowly swiveled over to Tabet where he gave a slight smile, next his eyes shifted to Akata.

    When his eyes met Akata, Akata felt as if his whole being was being violated. It was as if he couldn¡¯t hide a single action, moment, or thought from this almighty figure. Under his gaze, Akata felt like he was a speck of dust in the vast expanse of space. There was simply no comparison between the two of them.

    The figure slowly parted his lips and uttered some words. ¡°I¡¯m Great Lord Taple, you must be the mortal plant cultivator Akata, yes?¡± He asked the question but it was clear that he already knew the answer.

    Akata immediately spoke out when Great Lord Taple finished his sentence. In his most respectful voice he said, ¡°Great Lord Taple, I am indeed Akata. I have come to-¡±

    ¡°No need to finish your sentence. You didn¡¯t come here to heal us but it just so happened to end that way for you. I felt when you first arrived here and I thought it was strange, but I let it be. It is a good thing I did too, otherwise we would have both lost some great fortune.¡± As Great Lord Taple spoke a broad smile formed across his face. It was a genuine smile that he hadn¡¯t produced in a long while.

    ¡°Since you are willing to help us out then naturally we will help you as well. I¡¯m already aware of the offer my son and grandson have given you, but I plan on giving you something else. With my divine sense spread out I was able to pick up on you training with Tabet. I have learned that you possess the talent cultivate outer elements. That is a very unique trait that even amongst the tribe, only I possess. Therefore, I will bestow some knowledge upon you to help you out.¡± By now Great Lord Taple started to speak with Akata mentally.

    Akata couldn¡¯t believe this beast¡¯s words. This grand figure actually decided to reward him by giving him knowledge of outer elements. At first Akata didn¡¯t think it would be a big deal, but at the time he didn¡¯t think this figure would be this powerful. Akata sucked in a cold breath and nodded his head.

    ¡°Good. Good. Now I know that you have just finished healing Great Priest Bambe, so take all the time that you need to rest and recover your energy.¡± Great Lord Taple said calmly. ¡°When you have just tell me you are ready and what you need me to do.¡± After that he closed his eyes once more and began to concentrate on staying alive.

    Akata couldn¡¯t begin to think about what had just occurred. An almighty powerful figure was going to teach him something that he truly desired. It was like being taught to fly when one had no wings. Yet it didn¡¯t matter if you had wings because you could still learn and do it. It was a wonderful feeling for Akata.

    He instantly sat down in meditation and began to rebuild his energy. Akata had expended a bit of energy while he was healing Great Priest Bambe, but even still, it didn¡¯t take him long to recover. In about three or four hours Akata was back in tip top shape,

    He stood up and opened his eyes. He slowly walked over to Great Lord Taple and said in a calm and steady voice, ¡°I¡¯m ready.¡±

 Chapter 58: Provoking The Sect

    Red Cloud Sect

    Things had changed tremendously since the duel for the seventh rank. Ming Lu, Ming Xu, and Xiun Wu were banished from the sect while Akata had been sent to be ¡°locked up¡± for two months. That wasn¡¯t all, when Xi Fe heard what had happened to Xiun Wu, he had left the sect.

    You could say that life in the sect made a huge turn. With the banishment of multiple ranked people, the cabins were re-ranked. Xiao Pao was now ranked 5th in the cabins. Since his rank increased he had gained much more pills and items to help his cultivation. With these he broke through to the 3rd Grade of the Mortal Rank.

    Fang Zuwa made it back into the cabins and was now ranked 6th. Even though he had jumped ahead in rank and received better items than before, so far he has yet to break through to the 3rd Grade.

    Huihe Ji was released from the Medicine Pavilion. However, something shocking occurred with him while he was in there. During his time in seclusion, he had ample time to think about the sword. During that time he had gained enlightenment regarding it and broke through to the 3rd Grade. Having broken through, his injuries healed at a fast rate and he was set to leave at any time. With his new enlightenment and cultivation base he was able to make his way to become the 4th ranked disciple of the sect, even surpassing Xiao Pao!

    His appearance caused a huge uproar. Mostly everyone in the sect was happy to see Huihe Ji in good shape. A feast was made in his honor for recovering and making it back to the cultivation world.

    There were quite a few additions to the cabins now as well. One such addition made Pulong Chu, the now 2nd ranked disciple of the sect, even astonished beyond belief. That was because the 7th ranked cultivator of the sect was none other than Peizhi Xiuying!

    When she first came on stage to challenge the tenth cabin everyone was astonished. She had gone into the forest with Akata one day but had never came back. This made people suspect that she had died while in the forest. Yet here she was, challenging the cabins.

    And her strength wasn¡¯t bad either. She was easily able to advance in the cabin ranks all the way to the 7th. The thing is that she had used only her cultivation base, which was at the 2nd Grade of the Mortal Rank, throughout all her matches, not wanting to use her Grand Life Vine.

    Once she made it to the 7th cabin she spoke some domineering words. ¡°Once I break through to the 3rd Grade, then I will challenge more cabins and reach top three.¡± They were bold words but nobody challenged them. That was because everyone could feel another strong aura emanating off of her.

    Even though some of the strongest people in the sect had left, others were there to replace them. Because of this, life pretty much remained the same for the disciples of the sect.

    First Tower

    Seated in the middle of a room were two people. One such person was Jiandan Fuza who wore a white robe. The other was a middle aged man who looked deeply at him. This man wore white armor with a moon insignia on his chest.

    Jiandan Fuza sat across from this man. ¡°Elder Jiandan Zhou. Am I going to have to participate in this battle that is going to go on? I heard from father that my aunt is requesting help from us.¡± Jiandan Fuza had a calm face but his voice still carried a hint of anxiousness.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry Young Lord Jandan Fuza. I was sent here to tell you that you will not be used in the war at all. After all, you are the second prince of our clan. However, what I came here for was not just to tell you this. I was told to give you this token.¡± As Elder Jiandan Zhou spoke he reached out his hand where a small silver coin could be seen within.You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

    ¡°A Space Displacement Token? And a medium grade one at that. Am I to use this when the battle starts?¡± Jiandan Fuza asked, quite intrigued by the small silver token. He took the token from Elder Jiandan Zhou and inspected it before putting it in his bag.

    ¡°You are correct. But you won¡¯t be going home with this token. You¡¯ll be heading for the Fallen Moon Mountains where you will meet up with the rest of the important young figures of the participating sects and clans. There, you all will be safe. There will be multiple Earthly Rank cultivators and even some people in the Saintly Rank. You have nothing to worry about at all. Once the battle starts, you are to use this token and immediately leave.¡± Elder Jiandan Zhou said.

    Jiandan Fuza though for a moment and then nodded his head. ¡°I understand Elder Jiandan Zhou. Thank you for telling me all of this in person. I will be sure to tell my father of your good work.¡± Jiandan Fuza resumed the role of royalty as he spoke.

    Elder Jiandan Zhou nodded his head and then waved his hand. This movement caused the surroundings to distort as the table between the two disappeared and became empty space. A barrier had been set up by him to block all information from escaping their conversation.

    ¡°I shall take my leave now. I do wish the best of you and hope you stay safe.¡± Elder Jiandan Zhou then took his leave.

    Red Cloud Hall

    Sect Leader Fu was sitting on her throne and looking out into the distant. She watched and heard the whole conversation of Jiandan Fuza and Elder Jiandan Zhou play out. How could a barrier from this low level person ever stop her prying eyes?

    She thought to herself, ¡®These mortals are real idiots. What kind of person goes into the territory of the place they are about to attack and talk about their plans. Even if they did set up a barrier, who is to say that the enemy won¡¯t have a way to eavesdrop and pick up bit and pieces of the conversation. Tsk tsk. And here I thought people couldn¡¯t get any dumber.¡¯ Sect Leader Fu slowly shook her head as if she were truly disappointed.

    She watched the middle aged man walked through the sect toward the exit. She watched as he scoffed at the Elders he passed by, and ridiculed the disciples. ¡®Humph. He thinks he¡¯s all that maybe I should teach him a lesson?¡¯ She thought to herself.

    Truthfully, Sect Leader Fu was just bored and needed something to do. Spending her time watching the mortal world was getting extremely boring to her. After a moment she suddenly vanished from her spot.

    ¡°Heh. You look pretty good young lady. How about you give yourself to my second prince? You should know him, he¡¯s Jiandan Fuza. I¡¯m sure he would be delighted to have you for a moment¡­ that¡¯s if he hasn¡¯t already had a taste of you. Hahahaha!¡± Elder Jiandan Zhou bawled out as he spoke to a young girl. As he talked on he constantly licked his lips.

    ¡°Or maybe I should take you for myself hehe. I wouldn¡¯t mind a bit of extra company to keep me busy on my way back to the clan.¡± His lewd thoughts seemed to get the best of him as he reached his hand out toward Peizhi Xiuying.

    Peizhi Xiuying felt the pressure from the man in front of her and couldn¡¯t move an inch. She simply didn¡¯t have the power necessary to make a move. She stood there watching as the hand came closer to her. To her, it seemed as if this hand was moving in slow motion as it neared her.

    ¡°LEAVE HER ALONE!¡± A yell came from behind Elder Jiandan Zhou. His already lewd face formed a sinister smile. He turned his head to look at the girl that had appeared before him. She was really beautiful to the point that she looked unrivaled.

    ¡°Ah¡­ another beautiful young girl handing herself over to me. Haha. Mysterious my ass, this sect is just simply generous. I knew it was a good choice to just come out into the open and invade this sect. Even though the Clan Leader told me to keep an extremely low profile, who would¡¯ve thought that this sect wouldn¡¯t even send an Elder. Hahaha.¡±

    Elder Jiandan Zhou laughed his heart out to the point where tears started to stream down his face. He was supposed to not make himself known to the sect. In fact he wasn¡¯t even supposed to be in the sect at all. It was intended for him and Jiandan Fuza to meet outside the sect but Elder Jiandan Zhou took it upon himself to go inside himself. He wanted to get a better look at things, but to his amazement this sect seemed extremely weak. He hadn¡¯t even encountered one Elder yet even though he was intentionally causing a ruckus.

    He stared at the young girl and licked his lips. ¡°What¡¯s your name young lady?¡± He applied a bit of pressure on his voice to weigh down on the girl in front of him.

    The pressure was too great for her and she was forced to say her name. ¡°Pu¡­ Pulong Chu.¡± She managed to strain out.

    ¡°Ah. Pulong Chu. You seem to have guts standing up to me. Mind if I mess them up? Ahaha!¡± Elder Jiandan Zhou made a grasping motion with his hand and Pulong Chu was instantly dragged to his side. He held her in one arm and then licked the side of her face while taking in a deep breath of her fragrance. ¡°Perfect.¡± He said.

    He then turned back around to grab ahold of Peizhi Xiuying who seemed to be straining to move herself. ¡®Ahaha. What a wonderful day. Not only did I deliver the message and token to the Young Lord, I even managed to scout this crappy place and bring two beauties with me. Simply perfect ahaha.¡¯ He was extremely happy with himself.

    Suddenly, however, a cold snort resounded by his ears. The temperature in the area plummeted to the point that the ground froze over and blades of grass turned into ice. The snort caused Elder Jiandan Zhou¡¯s mouth, ears, nose, and eyes to ooze blood. He coughed multiple mouthfuls of blood before letting go of Pulong Chu.

    He was extremely frightened as of this moment. A simple snort caused him to receive internal injuries that would not be simple to heal. He looked forward to see another young girl in a white robe standing in the distance.

    She was a bit far away but even still he could hear her talking clearly. ¡°Now how should I handle this?¡± She said with a smile on her face.

 Chapter 59: Abandonment and Training

    Sect Leader Fu stood off in the distance with a smile on her face. ¡®Okay time to clear up some boredom she thought to herself. Hmm. I guess I should look serious as I do this.¡¯ She thought to herself as she took a single step forward.

    That single step made her appear right between Elder Jiandan Zhou and Peizhi Xiuying. Her smile had disappeared to be replaced with a cold look. The air radiating off of her caused Elder Jiandan Zhou to freeze in place.

    Elder Jiandan Zhou didn¡¯t know when it happened but all of a sudden it was only him and Sect Leader Fu in the area. The whole place seemed desolate and barren to the point the sect looked abandoned. It was an utter feeling of abandonment that caused his mind and body to feel as if it had no worth and was useless. He coughed up more mouthfuls of blood as his mind raced with thoughts of loneliness.

    ¡°You dare try to harm the disciples of my sect? Humph. An act as outrageous as this deserves nothing but death. But you don¡¯t even qualify to receive the punishment as gracious as death. You are a perfect subject for me to test the divine ability I came up with. Mind if I mess you up?¡± Sect Leader Fu¡¯s voice rang out all around the area.

    Elder Jiandan Zhou felt his heart clench as he heard the words being said to him. He stared directly at Sect Leader Fu and then let out a loud roar. He coughed up another mouthful of blood and then flashed an incantation gesture. He pointed at Sect Leader Fu and yelled, ¡°You aren¡¯t a match for me!¡±

    The sky above him turned into the night and the image of a full moon appeared. The light of the moon shone on Sect Leader Fu and gave off an aura that seemed to want to corrode her mind. But unfortunately it had no effect on her at all.

    When the light showed on Elder Jiandan Zhou he seemed to grow in size. He grew to 10 meters and then shot up to 30 meters tall. Not only did his size grow but his strength and pressure grew as well. The aura emanating off of him became much more fierce as well.

    ¡°Prepare to die!¡± Elder Jiandan Zhou yelled out once more as he swiped at Sect Leader Fu. This simple movement held the power of his full cultivation base of the 3rd Grade of the Earthly Rank. A strike from this level of strength could easily destroy a small mountain. This blow crushed toward Sect Leader Fu in an attempt to utterly annihilate her.

    Sect Leader Fu just stood there as the hand came closer to her. She didn¡¯t care for this level of attack at all, in fact she wasn¡¯t even looking at the hand approach her. Since she moved close to Elder Jiandan Zhou, she hadn¡¯t paid any attention to him at all, disregarding him completely.

    ¡®I wonder how my skill in abandonment will affect this mortal? Well only one way to find out. Huh? He launched this puny attack against me?¡¯ She gave a cold snort mentally. ¡®Humph. Daring to raise a finger against me is only courting death. Lucky for you, I decided to let you live however.¡¯

    A cold merciless smile crept upon Sect Leader Fu¡¯s face as she finally noticed the attack heading her way. She waved a finger toward the attack which made a gray wind spring up and destroy it. In truth, even if she hadn¡¯t noticed the attack and it had hit her, she wouldn¡¯t have even thought of it as an attack, but as a bug landing on her.

    The wind continued to fly toward Elder Jiandan Zhou. As he looked at the wind approach he felt his heart and mind become empty, as if it had been left behind in the endless void. The feeling of loneliness washed over him, and he no longer had the motivation to fight any longer.

    The wind was upon him in less than the blink of an eye and smashed into him. Even if he did want to fight, he would still be unable to do anything to defend from this wind. He coughed up a mouthful of blood and landed hard onto the ground.

    Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

    When he landed on the ground he didn¡¯t even move. It wasn¡¯t that he was dead, but he felt so abandoned that he didn¡¯t want to do anything anymore, not even get up from the ground. He just laid there with blood dripping from his mouth and looking up at the sky above him.

    The sky seemed gray and dark. The world was still and gray. No wind blew and there wasn¡¯t a cloud in the sky. No trees were in the area and the grass didn¡¯t sway at all. The world around him grew darker, getting dimmer as he looked up into the sky. Elder Jiandan Zhou felt as if his entire being was being abandoned.

    ¡®Hmm¡­ Not torturous enough. But it will do for now. I¡¯ll have plenty of time to slowly work on him. No need to rush things right now.¡¯ The cold smile she had had never left her face. ¡®I¡¯m sure that someone will be sent to find traces of him. I¡¯ll just slaughter them if they come. Hopefully that will get this war started faster so I can have some fun.

    It¡¯s been getting boring around here lately. Just a bit more time and I¡¯ll be able to let loose some tension.¡¯ As Sect Leader Fu was speaking she waved a hand toward Elder Jiandan Zhou where a gray magical symbol appeared and flew into his forehead.

    Elder Jiandan Zhou trembled and a gray light began to shine out of him. He stood up and walked toward Sect Leader Fu. His eyes were blank and were fully gray, it was as if his life was completely gone from him.

    ¡®Well time to see if these sects and clans have the gall to send somebody to cause some more trouble for my sect. Now I have no need to have the next person live.¡¯ Sect Leader Fu turned around and the gray world changed into the space of Red Cloud Hall. As she walked up to her throne and sat down, Elder Jiandan Zhou followed behind.

    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you kill him? Do you have something you wish to do with him?¡± Second Elder¡¯s voice rang out. ¡°You can let me in can¡¯t you? Is it to¡­ pleasure yourself? You can tell me, just the two of us here. Hehe.¡±

    Sect Leader Fu¡¯s face immediately blushed red and her eye twitched. ¡°N¡­ NO! It¡¯s nothing like that at all! Second Elder, why do you tease so much! I would rather deal with Third Elder spying on the girls than having to deal with you!¡± Sect Leader Fu gave a loud harrumph and disappeared from the throne.

    Second Elder just smiled as she left and let out a light laugh. ¡°Haha! She¡¯s still so insecure over these things.¡± She looked over at Elder Jiandan Zhou who was standing off to the side. ¡®The mortals on this planet are so inferior when it comes to looks. To think she would storm off even when I¡¯m talking about someone as ugly as this individual.¡¯ She turned around and then disappeared as well, leaving Elder Jiandan Zhou standing alone.

    Ming Clan Holy Beast Kingdom

    Two figures could be seen facing each other in an arena. They both wore pure white robes that glittered in the light. Their faces were calm and their eyes were closed. It was quiet to the point that one could hear their own blood moving through their body. All of a sudden the younger figure snapped their eyes open and waved a hand into the air.

    ¡°Blood Snow Tempest.¡± The figure said cooly. The voice was beautiful as it carried through the air, along with a sharp snowy wind. The snowy wind raced toward the figure ahead in an attempt to shred that figure into pieces.

    Even as the wind approached, the figure still had their eyes closed. The wind surrounded the figure and quickly transformed into a tempest. The sharp snow wrapped around the figure threatening to turn them into shreds.

    As the wind enveloped the figure they finally opened their eyes and waved a finger. The wave of a finger caused the Blood Snow Tempest to tremble violently and then break apart from the inside out. That wasn¡¯t all though, as a shard of ice that was three meters long appeared above the figures head.

    The shard of ice, however, looked like a finger. It was a three meter long finger that waved in the air from side to side. The finger then pointed straight at the other figure and stabbed straight for them. It brought an extreme coldness with it that froze the ground and the air as it passed by. It also moved at a shocking speed that made it almost impossible to avoid.

    It came straight at the figure and right before it touched the figure it stopped. Then it just broke apart and glittered away. Along with the destruction of the ice finger came a voice. ¡°Ming Lu, you have to focus more on applying bitter coldness into your attacks. Only then will you be able to unleash a new level of strength from your attacks. Right now, they are just too weak, no wonder you lost out to that Xiun Wu.¡± The voice was calm yet also seemed displeased.

    Ming Lu had blood dripping out of a corner of her mouth. ¡°I will remember your words elder brother Ming Fei. Please show me some more.¡± She asked politely as possible. She had truly began to realize how far she had been slacking in terms of cultivating when she saw how easily Xiun Wu had broken through her attack.

    It wasn¡¯t the fact that her cultivation wasn¡¯t high enough, but it was the fact that she couldn¡¯t fully understand how to properly use the magic she was taught. Now that had ¡®gone¡¯ back to her clan she immersed herself in training to become stronger and discover how to use it fully.

    Ming Fei nodded his head and closed his eyes once more. Ming Lu readied herself and closed her eyes as well. The air in the arena instantly dropped multiple degrees in that instant.

    Off to the side Ming Xu stood watching the training take place. She was immersed in Ming Lu¡¯s way of life right now. She had completely changed once they had come back to their clan. Secretly she thought to herself, ¡®She¡¯s trying to hide it¡­ but I know she¡¯s doing this for me.¡¯ Ming Xu then turned and left.

    Ming Lu slightly opened one of her eyes and looked at Ming Xu walk away. ¡®I won¡¯t ever let you get hurt again.¡¯ A tear formed in her eye and fell to the ground. She quickly closed her eye however and went back to training.

 Chapter 60: Encounter In The Dantion Region

    Red Cloud Sect

    Sect Leader Fu stood on top of a hill looking at the sect below her. She watched Peizhi Xiuying and Pulong Chu stand around with blank faces. It wasn¡¯t strange that they were in the same place that they had been standing in before. That was because the events that had just transpired were just too fast for them.

    It wasn¡¯t that Elder Jiandan Zhou and Sect Leader Fu were moved too fast, even if Elder Jiandan Zhou moved at his fastest speed the two girls would still be able to see him. The fact was, Sect Leader Fu created her own dimension and had placed herself and Elder Jiandan Zhou inside it. From the point of view of the girls, it looked as if Elder Jiandan Zhou was in the middle of an attack when, suddenly, he coughed up blood then disappeared.

    That was all that the two saw in front of them. While the fight was going on they felt tremendous pressure but then it vanished. Things were back to normal, as if nothing had happened at all. After a while the two looked at each other deeply.

    ¡°Peizhi Xiuying. Are¡­ are you okay? Did you get hurt?¡± Pulong Chu managed to start up a conversation. Even as she talked, her voice trembled slightly.

    ¡°Ye¡­ yes! I¡¯m okay, but what about yourself? You were actually grabbed by him, did he hurt you?¡± Peizhi Xiuying also squeezed out to the best of her ability.

    ¡°I¡¯m fine. He didn¡¯t do anything else to me. I¡¯m glad that you¡¯re alright though.¡± Pulong Chu calmed down and smiled.

    ¡°Why did you protect me? Knowing that that man was absurdly stronger than both of us. You wouldn¡¯t have stood a chance if he were to attack you, yet you actually stood up for me. Why?¡± Peizhi Xiuying was really perplexed by this. She would have found it much more normal for nobody but an Elder to show up, but instead saw Pulong Chu approach.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know either. I just kind of went into action without thinking. Maybe it¡¯s because you are a fellow member, or that you are a really kind person. Anyways, I just don¡¯t know why I tried to protect you.¡± Pulong Chu was just as confused as Peizhi Xiuying.

    They were both silent for a moment. Eventually, Peizhi Xiuying spoke out saying, ¡°Well I should repay you for your kindness. How about I take you out to eat?¡± She suggested.

    ¡°No no. There¡¯s no need to go through all of that trouble. I¡¯m fine really.¡± Pulong Chu tried to dissuade her.

    Peizhi Xiuying frowned a bit and puffed her cheeks. She wouldn¡¯t take no for an answer. ¡°Humph no no that won¡¯t do at all. We¡¯re fellow cabin ranked disciples so we might as well get to know each other. Come come I know a good place in town that sells the best hot dogs.¡± She grabbed onto Pulong Chu¡¯s arm and began to guide her into Purple Sky City.

    Pulong Chu just sighed internally and accepted her fate. Peizhi Xiuying had a reputation for always getting what she wanted no matter what, so she just went along and saved herself the trouble of resisting.

    On a small island inside a cave chamber, Akata stood in front of a man who was radiating an aura of death. The man was covered in vines and had hundreds of runes surrounding him. This man was Great Lord Taple, the true leader of the Scarlet Tiger Tribe. His life force was in serious danger of being extinguished and taken over by a foreign one. Akata was here to help and get rid of the foreign life force.

    Akata sat down in front of Great Lord Taple and closed his eyes. ¡°I¡¯m going to need for you to not resist at all.¡± Akata said slowly and quietly. He was calming his mind down to an extreme degree in order to have complete control over his nature energy.Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

    As soon as he had walked into the room, he had sensed the enormous amount of life force that had belonged to the plant cultivator. He knew that if he wasn¡¯t careful, then that amount of life force could potentially harm his own. Because of this, Akata wanted to make ample preparation to deal with the life force inside of Great Lord Taple.

    ¡°Alright. I won¡¯t resist.¡± Great Lord Taple spoke. He wasn¡¯t letting Akata know but instead was informing his son, Lord Tafei. As soon as he spoke the pressure in the room decreased dramatically. Great Lord Taple became as still as a statue and he looked completely lifeless.

    Akata went straight to work. His nature energy mixed in with his plant cultivation base power rushed into Great Lord Taple¡¯s body. The energy immediately crashed into the foreign life force of the plant cultivator. The life force completely filled Great Lord Taple¡¯s body and invaded every single part of him. When Akata encountered it, he instantly felt the denseness of it.

    ¡®This life force is way more dense than that of Great Priest Bambe¡¯s. If I¡¯m not careful in absorbing this, it could harm me instead. But¡­ if I can take all of it as my own, my plant cultivation base will grow immensely more powerful. It could even surpass my mortal cultivation base.¡± Akata mused to himself.

    He was calm and excited at the same time. This was because he had never heard of somebody ever having more than one cultivation base before. Not only will he have two cultivation bases, but they will be at a level that surpassed most of the disciples at the Red Cloud Sect. He could eclipse all the people there and become the 1st ranked disciple.

    ¡®Once I become the 1st ranked disciple, then I can start my journey of reaching the pinnacle of strength in this world.¡¯ He still wanted to keep his promise to Peizhi Xiuying of one of them reaching the pinnacle of strength. He would always remember this promise and hold it dear in his heart forever.

    Akata¡¯s nature energy rushed throughout Great Lord Taple¡¯s body like a raging river. It flooded his body and quickly absorbed the foreign life force. There was so much of it that it took Akata nearly five hours to finish up absorbing it. But thanks to it, Akata broke through to the 3rd Grade of the Seed Rank.

    He felt more attune to nature and could feel his nature energy and nature sense grow rapidly. Akata felt that he had much better control of his nature energy. Even though he felt this, he wasn¡¯t focused on in full. His mind was still worried about about the foreign life force of the plant cultivator within Great Lord Taple¡¯s body. Now, Akata was moving on to the dantion region.

    The dantion region alone held more foreign life force than Great Priest Bambe¡¯s whole body. Akata¡¯s nature energy rushed into the dantion region and madly absorbed the foreign life force. With his increase in cultivation base, the process of absorbing the life force became much easier for Akata to complete. In fact he even became a little relaxed.

    Inside the dantion region he thought to inspect it a bit. This would probably be the only time that he had to fully inspect such a strong being without any resistance at all. In the dantion region of Great Lord Taple, Akata saw a scene similar to his own. There was a large piece of land in the middle of an ocean. On the land there was an enormous sleeping white tiger.

    The white tiger had two long tails that were about a third of the length of the body. It had sharp claws and two saber teeth. The tiger was very mysterious. As it laid there, it seemed to pass through time, sometimes it felt ancient and other times it was as if it had just been born. The tiger kept passing through different times as its hair grew longer and sometimes became short. Sometimes, the tiger, would even flicker to become a baby but immediately go back again.

    ¡®What a weird cultivation base. Is this what all beasts have or is it just unique to the Scarlet Tigers?¡¯ Akata was intrigued by the scene but after a bit more time he put it to the back of his mind. ¡®Okay, time to get back to work.¡¯ Once again he focused all of his energy on absorbing the life force of the plant cultivator.

    Akata¡¯s nature energy approached the sleeping white tiger on the large piece of land. It radiated an unbearable amount of pressure. This was the cultivation base of Great Lord Taple. Clearly it was a powerful one but the life force that invaded it, made it weak beyond compare.

    The nature energy Akata used turned into small wisps and made its way toward the sleeping white tiger. The wisps of nature energy moved fast and made it possible to ease the pressure that was crushing at it. That was because the pressure wouldn¡¯t be focused completely on one thing and would split apart and focus on the wisps.

    As the wisps came closer to the sleeping white tiger, Akata got a clearer image of it. He could now see patches of green moss like substance on the fur of the tiger. And the large piece of land was completely covered in the green substance. The substance itself held a huge amount of life force within it that Akata could feel without even being that close to it.

    ¡®This is going to be a bit tricky to deal with.¡¯ Akata mused to himself. He controlled the wisps to fly toward the land and merge in with the ground. The wisps then quickly swept through the land and absorbed the life force. Akata started off on one end of the land and made his way around toward the other end. Once that happened he would then have his nature energy sweep toward the center where the sleeping tiger was.

    But something unexpected happened as Akata was proceeding along. As Akata was absorbing the life force he heard a snort within the dantion region. This completely caught him off guard. He didn¡¯t stop what he was doing but instead moved slower.

    ¡°Trying to absorb me eh? Well you¡¯re not taking me down that easily!¡± A voice sounded throughout the dantion region. All of a sudden the land started to shake.

 Chapter 61: The Rebellion Starts

    ¡°Trying to absorb me eh? Well you¡¯re not taking me down that easily!¡± A voice sounded throughout the dantion region. All of a sudden the land started to shake.

    The ground shook violently causing the white tiger to cry out in its sleep. The voice caused Akata¡¯s nature energy to tremble on the verge of being destroyed. On the outside, his body started to ooze blood from his mouth and nose. However, even as he tried to pull his nature energy back, it began to¡­ spread out even more.

    Akata felt a profound sense of danger as he hurriedly focused his mind on controlling his nature energy to its fullest. But, nothing seemed to work. Out of desperation he decided to, instead of trying to resist, he should instead attack.

    Akata¡¯s eyes glowed with a red and golden light as he rotated his red and gold runes. His formless and colorless nature energy took on a red and gold hue and was instantly strengthened beyond compare. This was a new application of his red and gold runes. He found that, ever since he obtained his plant cultivation base he had a new connection to nature. This made it so that he could apply the strength increase of his red and gold runes to his nature energy and sense.

    His nature energy burst forth with newfound strength, In the moment that Akata decided to attack he focused all of his attention on picking up clues on how to win. Instantly he noticed that the only part of the land that shook was the part that the life force still remained. Behind him, the land was as still as ice.

    ¡®Could this be the remnants of the plant cultivator talking to me? If so how? If he supposedly died then how can he still be here? He¡¯s out to destroy me I know it¡­ but that¡¯s not going to happen. The only part of the land that¡¯s not posing me any danger it the part that I already absorbed the life force, then I should just absorb the rest of it then.¡¯

    Akata quickly thought these things and made the decision to absorb the rest of the foreign life force of the plant cultivator. His nature energy swept out in front of him into the land ahead. He focused it to absorb the life force in the land. His nature energy was backed by the power of his plant cultivation base and his runes. It rapidly absorbed the life force of the plant cultivator in a large amount.

    Akata¡¯s absorption speed was at a whole new level thanks to his runes. The speed in which he was absorbing this life force was multiple times faster than what he had done before. The life force also bolstered Akata¡¯s cultivation base, making him stronger as he absorbed it. This in turn made his absorption power and speed grow.

    A loud snort could be heard as soon as Akata started to absorb more of the life force. ¡°You dare to continue absorbing me?! Ha! How swell, you save me the trouble of waiting to revive myself.¡± All of a sudden everything went silent.

    Akata felt that no resistance was going against him as of this moment. This made absorption go extremely fast for him. In the space of a breath he had completely absorbed half of the life force of the plant cultivator inside the dantion region. Akata was too surprised by this and couldn¡¯t think of any reason why this would happen.

    ¡°That was too easy, what is this figure doing? And what does he mean by reviving himself? Ugh, this is beginning to be too much for me and much more complicated than I thought it would be.¡± By the time Akata got to the end of his thought he had already absorbed all of the foreign life force of the plant cultivator. This led him to reach the peak 3rd Grade.

    Of course he was skeptical of taking the life force now, especially considering the words of the plant cultivator. However, he wanted the good fortune of this life force. Not only could this life force be used to help him increase his cultivation level, but it also increased his nature energy, made his nature sense more powerful, and allowed for his own life force to grow. When would he ever come across some good fortune like this again, if ever? So he of course was going to take advantage of this opportunity that was given to him.This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

    After absorbing the life force in the dantion region, Akata didn¡¯t move on to the final place, the soul region. Instead, he focused on the sleeping white tiger. It still had patches of green on its fur that emanated a powerful energy from them. This energy also held a deep profoundness within it that Akata felt amazed about.

    He sent his nature sense out to inspect the green patches closer. Upon getting within a few hundred meters of the sleeping white tiger Akata felt a burst of energy and an intense sealing effect lock him down.

    Akata¡¯s face immediately changed as he found himself not capable of moving. Everything about him was locked down as of this moment, his nature sense, nature energy, cultivation base, and his body were all affected.

    ¡®I can¡¯t move at all.¡¯ Akata couldn¡¯t move anything at this moment, not even his lips or vocal cords. All he could do was think to himself. ¡®How can I get out of this situation now? I can¡¯t move at all. All I can do is rotate my red rune, but with nothing else to apply it to it¡¯s useless.¡¯ Indeed Akata tried everything and found out that his red rune was still able to rotate but he didn¡¯t have anything to apply it to.

    ¡®This sealing effect is coming from that green stuff. Which means the closer I am to it, the stronger the feeling is. I need to find a way to back up from here somehow.¡¯ But the area was completely locked down and made it impossible for Akata to move about anywhere.

    In the chamber room, Lord Tafei found something to be amiss. Upon closer inspection his face changed immensely. ¡°Why isn¡¯t he moving? It¡¯s like he has been caught in a trap of locked down space. But also of greater effect. Not even his cultivation base is moving right now.¡± Lord Tafei approached Akata and he could sense a great aura of sealing emanating off of him.

    ¡°What kind of sealing is this?! Even I can feel a little of its effects and it¡¯s not even targeting me. Could this be the work of that damn plant cultivator?! I¡¯m not even able to get him out of this, this type of sealing is far from my abilities.¡± As he spoke he found that small green spots were appearing on Akata¡¯s skin.

    ¡°These are similar to father¡¯s spots. This is definitely the work of the plant cultivator.¡± Lord Tafei ground his teeth out of anger, but hidden within was also a sense of helplessness. He knew he didn¡¯t have the power to overcome that sealing effect now. His own father, the strongest in the land, was unable to endure it that well. This is why he had been stuck in that room for many years and was unable to change into his beast form. He couldn¡¯t even fully rotate his cultivation base.

    Right when he was about to inspect a bit closer he heard a loud bang coming from the Elder¡¯s chambers. He hurriedly sent his divine sense out and inspected the situation. His face completely darkened upon seeing what was happening.

    ¡°No no no no NO! Not at a time like this!¡± Lord Tafei instantly disappeared from his position and was back in the room with the Elders of the tribe. ¡°GREAT PRIEST BAMBE WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?!¡± Lord Tafei¡¯s voice boomed throughout the whole cave.

    All he got in response was a laugh. ¡°Ahahaha.¡± The laugh was derisive and contained deep resentment. ¡°Lord Tafei, by your reaction it seems that you anticipated on me rebelling. I guess the timing just caught you off guard. No matter however, all is still going according to plan.¡±

    Great Priest Bambe turned his head and spoke out. ¡°Leave Lord Tafei to me. You all handle the rest of the work.¡± Behind him some Elder¡¯s were fighting each other. Obviously Great Priest Bambe had his force built up for some time.

    In fact throughout the whole cave fighting was going on. Some Scarlet Tigers were loyal to the side of Lord Tafei, while others had turned traitorous and followed behind Great Priest Bambe. Even the younger generation was split up between two sides. Nobody was left wondering which side to join, clearly those that were loyal remained loyal, and those that were traitors had no hesitation in the matter.

    Lord Tafei¡¯s eyes were bloodshot as he surveyed the situation. This was far worse than he had thought things had become. The tribe was nearly split in half between who to follow. This made the rebellion become much more complicated than picking out a few traitors.

    Since the start of the Scarlet Tiger Tribe, they had two great figures that led the tigers. One of the figures was stronger than the other and came to be called the Lord, while the other came to be known as the Priest. These two were the leaders of the Scarlet Tiger Tribe, however the Lord¡¯s words held more sway.

    Eventually the title of Lord and Priest was passed down to the children of the figures and continued that way for all time. Even though one was the nominal leader, both of the people that held the titles were still close in power. However that changed when the Scarlet Tiger Tribe was cast away from the mainland.

    The true Great Priest, Great Priest Bayou, had been captured and held hostage by the mainland. This led the Scarlet Tiger Tribe to pass down the title of Great Priest down earlier to his son Priest Bambe. However, people were still willing to follow Priest Bambe due to him being such a great leader.

    Thus the Scarlet Tiger Tribe was split between two factions. Those for the Lords and those for the Priests. Lord Tafei knew this already but what he didn¡¯t know was that things would escalate this badly and be this outrageous. It was an utter act of rebellion that played out. Which was simply intolerable.

    But, Lord Tafei wasn¡¯t focused on any of that at the moment. His bloodshot eyes were focused coldly at Great Priest Bambe. He uttered his words extremely coldly. ¡°Get your hands off Lady Haque, NOW!¡±

 Chapter 62: Sands of Time

    Great Priest Bambe stood there at a loss. His face was blank and his eye was left twitching. He was expecting for Lord Tafei to fly into a rage over his tribe but instead he was concerned over his wife?

    He looked down at his hand where Lady Haque was being held by the throat. After a short moment Great Priest Bambe gave a cold smile and squeezed harder. While doing so he licked his lips and picked his head up to look into the eyes of Lord Tafei.

    ¡°Ahahaha!¡± Seeing Lord Tafei¡¯s eyes grow wider caused Great Priest Bambe to let out a sinister sounding joyous laugh. He unconsciously gripped Lady Haque¡¯s throat harder, making cracking noises sound out.

    ¡°Ahh!¡± Lady Haque managed to let out a squeal before her throat was held so tight that she couldn¡¯t even produce a sound. Her eyes were bulging and were turning red yet, as hard as she struggled, she was unable to break free of Great Priest Bambe¡¯s grip.

    At the sight of this Lord Tafei¡¯s eyes turned into a deep crimson as he turned into his human form. All of the Scarlet Tigers that were able to, had changed into their human forms. All beasts pretty much like battling within their human form as it made things much more easier. This was because for big beasts it made them more nimble and agile while for littler beasts they could grow become more fearsome.

    As Lord Tafei changed into his human form he waved his hand. The wave of his hand produced hundreds of runes that glowed with an orange light. Instantly, the temperature in the area rose up immensely as numerous balls of flames were produced from the orange runes.

    But he didn¡¯t stop there as he simultaneously waved his other hand making numerous brown runes appear in the air around him. The brown runes dug into the ground below him and caused the cave room to shake tremendously. Cracking sounds could be heard as the ceiling above them split apart and the ground below them moved upwards. Surprisingly, Lord Tafei was taking the battle to the surface.

    Even as they were moving upward to the surface the balls of flame shot toward Great Priest Bambe in a shocking speed. It might have seemed like a wild attack that could end up harming Lady Haque, but in reality it wasn¡¯t. In fact, if you were paying close enough attention some of the fire wasn¡¯t hot at all, it even brought a nurturing feeling with it.

    Those flames were aiming straight for Lady Haque in an attempt to grab and carry her away from Great Priest Bambe. The rest, however, were trying to engulf and utterly destroy him.

    But given Great Priest Bambe¡¯s level of cultivation being at the Beast Rank Grade 8, how could he not notice this? His level of strength was the same as Lord Tafei¡¯s, and they had even grown up alongside each other, so of course he knew some of Lord Tafei¡¯s tricks of disguising his true intentions within his attack.

    Great Priest Bambe gave a cold snort and threw Lady Haque toward the flames that carried an intense heat within them while he himself dodged out of the way of the fire. Fighting someone with the same cultivation base as you was already hard enough, not to mention trying to hold onto a hostage as well. Of course he was going to get rid of her as soon as possible.

    Lady Haque whistled through the air toward the flames of extreme heat. However, Lord Tafei let out a relieved breath as he saw this happening. He waved his hand and the oppressive heat from before immediately disappeared without a trace.

    His whole attack had been a ruse to rick Great Priest Bambe in releasing his wife. From the beginning all of the fire he created had been harmless, the only thing he did with his mastery over fire runes was increase the temperature in the air around certain fireballs.

    He knew that Great Priest Bambe was looking for an opportunity to release Lady Haque from his grasp, yet also wanted to burden himself in the process. So he intentionally used a trick that Great Priest Bambe was familiar with in order to throw him off. And it worked!If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

    In truth, Lord Tafei was extremely frightened that Great Priest Bambe wouldn¡¯t take the bait and would instead hold onto Lady Haque a bit longer or even attack with his own skill. But luckily he hadn¡¯t.

    ¡°Come here.¡± Lord Tafei made a grasping motion with his hand as he made the flame in the surrounding area to form into the image of a hand. It then reached out and caught Lady Haque midair and safely returned her to his side.

    Although her throat was on the verge of being crushed she still smiled at her husband and spoke, ¡°Thank you.¡± She said hoarsely. This type of injury couldn¡¯t be considered light, however, it couldn¡¯t be considered serious either.

    She didn¡¯t stay for long as she hurriedly rushed into the cave to fight. There was still and Elder of her tribe that was fighting one-against-two and it wasn¡¯t looking good for him. Lord Tafei watched as his wife left and nodded his head. He then immediately turned his head to focus in on Great Priest Bambe once again.

    The face of Great Priest Bambe was extremely unsightly as of this moment. As soon as he saw the look of Lord Tafei¡¯s eyes turn to one of relief, he knew that he had made the wrong choice. ¡°Shit.¡± He said to himself as he was dodging the ¡°deadly¡± fireballs coming his way. By the time he had stopped moving, Lady Haque was already on her way to help out the sole loyal Elder of the tribe.

    His expression grim, Great Priest Bambe said, ¡°Humph. Well there¡¯s no need for me to hold back now is there.¡± He waved a hand in the air causing tens of runes to appear. However, even with the small number, the complex symbols on them radiated a fearsome pressure that weighed down on most things.

    ¡°Outer Element?!¡± Lord Tafei¡¯s face took on an immediate change. He knew that the difference between an outer element and an inner element was tremendous. The ability to wield an Outer Element could turn an ordinary person into a legendary figure that reigned supreme.

    Invisible runes that sparkled with white motes of light appeared. Instantly, the feeling of time moving was felt in the area. It felt as if the area had gone back to the past and yet also had hints to the future as well. It was a peculiar feeling but nonetheless it was one of supreme control over the forces of time.

    ¡°Outer Element of Time! You can actually control the Outer Element of Time?!¡± A bit of fear rose up within Lord Tafei¡¯s mind as he saw the sparkling runes before him. As he analyzed the situation his mind gradually returned to normal, albeit he was still cautious.

    ¡®It seems he doesn¡¯t have that much control over this Outer Element otherwise he could produce a lot more runes. Also the time in the area doesn''t seem to be in his complete control which means he doesn¡¯t have much skill regarding this.¡¯

    It was true. Great Priest Bambe didn¡¯t have much skill using the Outer Element of Time. It was just that he wanted to get this over with quickly and with both he and Lord Tafei having the same level of cultivation base, that really wasn¡¯t a possibility. Especially since they knew each other''s tactics and grew up together. The only way he saw himself beating Lord Tafei quickly was if he revealed his secret and brought out his Outer Element of Time.

    A snicker appeared across Great Priest Bambe¡¯s face as he caused the tens of runes to appear. He watched as Lord Tafei¡¯s face fell and his heart immediately eased. He had been worried that Lord Tafei might have secretly had an outer element as well, but alas he didn¡¯t.

    ¡°Prepare yourself.¡± Great Priest Bambe called out. The sparkling runes danced in the air before shooting out toward Lord Tafei.

    Lord Tafei immediately waved his hand causing hundreds of purple runes to appear around him. He spread the runes out to cover over a wide area that encompassed the battle. He looked at the approaching sparkling runes and then took in a deep breath.

    Boom!

    The sparkling time rune slammed into his figure causing it to age extremely rapidly. Lord Tafei went through multiple passages of time. He transformed back into his beast of a Scarlet Tiger where he appeared as a young tiger. But then he quickly grew up to his teens, then his young adult stage, and then back to his middle aged self, and finally to an elderly tiger. All of this happened in a flash.

    Even as he turned into an elder however, the passage of time still didn¡¯t stop. Lord Tafei¡¯s eyes went wide and his arm turned into dust. Then his legs and chest until finally all of him had been reduced to nothing more than ash and dust. He had completely lived his life in that brief moment.

    After all of that happened Great Priest Bambe swung his arm around, face grim, and caused hundreds of tan runes to be produced around him. Sand started to fill the area as an hourglass was made around him.

    Bang!

    A fireball had just hit the hourglass the moment that it was put up. It caused extreme heat to bolster the area. In fact normal sand would¡¯ve turned into glass by this intense heat at the moment. Luckily, Great Priest Bambe¡¯s sand wasn¡¯t exactly normal.

    Great Priest Bambe faced the tiger in front of him as a trace of anger appeared on his face. He gave a cold snort, ¡°Tafei! Don¡¯t think that you can escape me using your illusions. They will only get you so far for so long!¡± Great Priest Bambe waved his hand causing more tan runes to appear as they congregated together into the form of another hourglass. The tan runes however were a bit different this time however as they had a sort of sparkle to them.

    Lord Tafei was in his tiger form panting. His line of family were known to be experts in the Inner Element of Illusions, but it was still a close call for him. Switching places with one of his created illusions took a lot of energy out of him briefly but given his strength and a little bit of time he would be fine afterwards. But what he saw at this moment caused all of his exhaustion to wash away instantly.

    ¡°Now he¡¯s infusing the Outer Element of Time with the Inner Element of Sand? I didn¡¯t think he had skill of this caliber with the Outer Element of Time.¡± Lord Tafei¡¯s face was extremely grim as he saw the sand in the hourglass start to fall and time begin to distort.

 Chapter 63: Breaking Free

    Lord Tafei felt a sense of profound danger rush over him as he looked at the hourglass forming. This hourglass had the Inner Element of Sand and the Outer Element of Time contained within it. The infusion of runic elements was a hard concept to grasp. For Great Priest Bambe to be able to do this, especially with an Outer Element must have been extremely difficult to do.

    Great Priest Bambe¡¯s face was pale and he coughed up a mouthful of blood. Apparently, this move couldn¡¯t be used lightly as it created a backlash that hit him. Mouth dripping blood he waved a finger and caused more sand to drop down the hourglass. The time in the area began to speed up. He waved his finger again and less sand fell, this in turn made time slow down.

    It wasn¡¯t that he was testing out this hourglass ability, but rather he couldn¡¯t control it that well at all. Of course he didn¡¯t let his frustration over this show on his face, instead he gave a cold smile that made it seem as if he had everything over control. And to Lord Tafei, this was the exact thought that was placed within his mind.

    ¡®Combing his Inner Element of Sand and the Outer Element of Time he created such a divine ability. Just what is this technique of his?¡¯ Lord Tafei had many questions within his mind right now. But of course, the more questions he had the more fearful he became.

    ¡°Ahahaha!¡± Great Priest Bambe let out a rumbling laughter. ¡°Through use of my Inner Element of Sand I gained some enlightenment regarding time. Thus I began to study and focus more on the Outer Element of Time. In the end I was only able to gain a really basic understanding of it, but even that little bit of understanding is enough to completely change my strength.

    Given that I gained enlightenment of time with use of my Inner Element of Sand, I was naturally able to combine the two together to create my divine ability, Sands of Time!¡± Great Priest Bambe yelled out proudly, his voice echoing throughout the island.

    In truth he was just too proud of his achievements. He really wanted to tell Lord Tafei about it, but knew that he was going to battle against him later on so he had kept it a secret. But now that he had displayed his ability, he wanted to brag about it. Even though he was braggin however, he didn¡¯t tell what his Sands of Time ability could do or how much it affected his surroundings.

    Lord Tafei could only guess at what the Sands of Time ability could do. He became extremely cautious but didn¡¯t let it show on his face. He gave a cold snort and retorted, ¡°Even if you have control over an Outer Element and are able to infuse it with another Element, you still aren¡¯t a match for me. Given how crude your control is and how anxious you are to beat me, it can be said that I even have the upper hand in this fight.¡± Lord Tafei spoke loudly his voice booming.

    As soon as he finished speaking, he waved his hand causing hundreds of runes to appear. Some of the runes were orange while others were yellow and brown. Three different runic elements swirled around Lord Tafei and then combined together in order to create his divine ability.

    The orange rune was the Inner Element of Fire, the yellow rune was the Inner Element of Air, and the brown rune was the Inner Element of Earth. Together they created a giant rune that glowed a dim yellowish orange light.

    The giant rune burrowed into the ground and caused the earth to tremble. Almost instantly the ground heated up to an extreme temperature causing it to turn into molten lava. The molten lava looked orange in color and rose into the air and formed into many small balls of lava that covered the whole area.

    Lord Tafei raised a finger in the air and swept it toward Great Priest Bambe. This caused about roughly ten balls of lava to fly toward him at a shocking speed. As they flew, they broke apart into small bits of lava that looked like dust in the wind. It seemed as if the bits of lava themselves were apart of the wind.

    Great Priest Bambe focused in closely and waved his finger causing the sand in the hourglass to slow down more. Once the bits of lava were in range they immediately slowed down a large amount. Although it was still quite fast, it was more than enough that Great Priest Bambe could stroll out of the way if he wanted to.Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

    When time slowed down in the area, Great Priest Bambe waved his hand causing tan and blue runes to show around him. These were the Inner Elements of Sand and Water respectively. The two runes combined together to create a giant wave of water that was dense with sediments. The water split into many bits as well and shot toward the bits of lava.

    Although combining runes seemed like a simple matter, it was actually extremely difficult to do. In fact the only way to become an Elder of the tribe was to be able to fuse two runes together. This was a case where it was easier said than done.

    Great Priest Bambe for example originally had combined the Inner Elements of Sand and Water together to create his Raining Burial ability, which allowed him to truly become a Priest. His ability caused tiny shards of sand to rain down from the sky inside of water droplets and tear and bury everything below it. His mastery over water let him keep sand within it, yet not get it damp. His mastery over sand let him give it properties of water.

    Lord Tafei on the other hand was truly a genius as he was able to infuse three different elements together in a flawless manner. This was skill that was rarely seen within the tribe. In fact in recent years only Lord Tafei and the former Great Priest, Great Priest Bayou, were capable of combining three elements together.

    Even though Great Priest Bayou had done something truly spectacular in the tribe it was still looked over. That was because Great Lord Taple had done something even more amazing, he had been found to have the skill of using an Outer Element. This completely eclipsed the fact that Great Priest Bayou had perfect control of three elements.

    The combined use of the Inner Elements of Earth, Fire, and Air led Lord Tafei to create his divine ability called Molten Wind. It created lava that would then transform into air and drift like the wind, burning and scorching everything in its path. All three elements backed each other up, making sure the weaknesses of the elements were covered up.

    The more elements one fused together, the more powerful the technique would become. Precisely because all the elements involved would cover up the weaknesses of the other elements and that particular element would be strengthened by the others.

    Two infused elements would make the ability four times as strong as an ability with one element. This was because each element would be twice as strong, thus making the ability four times as powerful as a single element. And with three, the power would be nine times as strong as a single element! There was just a huge disparity in strength with the addition of an element in a technique.

    Thus, even though Great Priest Bambe could easily dodge Lord Tafei¡¯s Molten Wind, he didn¡¯t dare to take it lightly. Even with his skill of the Outer Element of Time, he wasn¡¯t truly confident in taking on this attack. Therefore, he used his own technique to go against this attack.

    Bang! Bang! Boom!

    The countless drops of sandwater impeded the path of the Molten Wind for a short while but it was clear that the disparity in strength was just too wide of a margin that just couldn¡¯t be crossed. The Molten Wind broke through the Raining Burial technique but was still slowed down due to the Sands of Time technique.

    However in the next instant something caught Great Priest Bambe off guard. Lord Tafei waved his hand in the air causing purple runes to appear in the sky. An illusory aura filled the air instantly and washed over everything within the area. These runes had been present the moment Lord Tafei had used them the first time. However he had hidden them in order to not have to summon them again. Now, he was unleashing them at this moment.

    Once Great Priest Bambe saw the runes appear his face dropped intensely. His mind started to race with thoughts that made his heart tense. What he had just suspected was a terrible thought that he didn¡¯t even think to want to comprehend. ¡°He¡­ he can¡¯t be¡­¡±

    Right at that moment, Lord Tafei coughed up a mouthful of blood and his face paled. His energy grew weak but his aura rose to fierce levels. He waved his hands in the air and caused the purple runes to merge into the remaining Molten Wind. The Molten Wind shook and an incredible aura rose up within them. The aura spread out throughout the whole island and even inside of the cave.

    It filled the whole land and everyone on the island could feel it. The energy washed over all of the Scarlet Tigers and made its way deeper into the cave. The energy even reached into the depths of the cave where Akata, Tabet, and Great Lord Taple were located. Tabet was still in the chamber and couldn¡¯t go out due to his father sealing the chamber. He felt the tremendous surge of energy wash over him.

    Akata also felt the surge of energy wash over his body as he was stuck in the dantion region of Great Lord Taple. The illusory aura washed over him and his nature energy and invigorated the illusory image within his body. He felt a surge of energy within his body as it resonated with the illusory aura in the surrounding area. It was a truly strong aura that made him feel powerful.

    In this moment Akata found a way to incorporate his illusory rune into his skills. A profound gleam appeared within his eyes as he caused a purple rune to appear with a thought. He used the illusory aura in the area to help him to form the rune. Given how he had just started to learn about runes, he still didn¡¯t have the capabilities to create runes on his own.

    The illusory rune was huge and flashed over the head of the sleeping white tiger. It glowed with a deep purple light and showed over the whole land of the dantion region.

    ¡°Time to get out of here.¡± A decisive gleam appeared within his eyes.

 Chapter 64: Mirror Reflection

    Almost as soon as the illusory aura spread out across the island, it immediately converged toward Lord Tafei. The illusory aura then converged into the Molten Wind technique and when that happened an intense aura of power washed over everything.

    He waved his hand causing a purple rune to appear over the Molten Wind. It then sank down into the wind and caused the wind to emit a droning sound. All of a sudden the Molten Wind expanded to become countless times bigger and surround Great Priest Bambe on all sides.

    It was in this moment that Lord Tafei had did something that hadn¡¯t been seen or heard about in ages. He combined four different runes together. A combination of three runes was already powerful enough to be nine times stronger than a lone rune. With four runes however, the strength would be sixteen times more powerful than a rune by itself. It was much more powerful than a combination of three runes by almost two times!

    ¡°Grand Molten Mist!¡± Lord Tafei screamed out as he waved his hand toward Great Priest Bambe. The Molten Wind took on a purple hue and spread out across the area and became much more abundant, making the wind look more like mist.

    Great Priest Bambe stood there wide eyed at the mist surrounding him as he was at a loss. He truly didn¡¯t know what to do right now. If he could even control a tenth of the Outer Element of Time then he wouldn¡¯t be in such a dire situation, but alas, he didn¡¯t have the skill necessary to do so.

    He gave a bitter laugh as he watched the Grand Molten Mist completely break through his Sands of Time technique and speed toward him. There was nowhere to escape to so he just closed his eyes and waited.

    Boom!

    Great Priest Bambe was engulfed in the Grand Molten Mist as it completely took him over. He didn¡¯t even have the chance to scream as his body was instantly destroyed. A huge crater could be seen where Great Priest Bambe had once stood, but all that was there was dirt and not a single body part, not even ash remained.

    Lord Tafei coughed up multiple mouthfuls of blood as he fell to the ground. The Grand Molten Mist dispersed into nothingness as he fell and was soon gone as if it had never existed. Lord Tafei¡¯s aura grew extremely weak as he continued to cough up more blood. The price he had to pay to use a four rune technique was tremendous. In fact, if he hadn¡¯t succeeded in combining them together, he likely would¡¯ve died!

    Drenched in his own blood, Lord Tafei just laid there on the ground. He could hear the sounds of fighting that was going on within the cave still. Apparently nobody noticed that Great Priest Bambe had died just now. Once they did, the fighting would surely decrease bit by bit until the traitors completely lost their morale and gave up.

    It was with great willpower that Lord Tafei forced his body to remain conscious and aware of his surroundings. It was an arduous task for him at the moment to even breathe. He focused all of his effort into one thing, to observe what Akata was doing. And he found that Akata¡­ just twitched his body!

    It was a simple movement, however, to Lord Tafei it was a great weight off of his shoulders. He passed out with a smile on his face. He didn¡¯t know how many casualties would become of his tribe, he didn¡¯t know the condition of his wife, and he didn¡¯t know whether his father would be completely healed. But what he did know was that Akata, this unknown young mysterious boy that happened to appear on his island on day, was back in action.

    A giant purple rune was floating above the body of the sleeping white tiger inside of Great Lord Taple¡¯s dantion region. It sent out a massive aura of illusions and weighed down on everything. The sealing effect from before was actually starting to wane as though it might be broken through.

    ¡®This is a great amount of sealing strength. But, I have to break through it somehow. The only way I can think to break out of this is to¡­ become strong enough that it won¡¯t affect me. In order for me to be that strong, the first step is that I have to see myself be that strong! So that is what I¡¯m going to do.¡¯ A profound and determined glow appeared within Akata¡¯s eyes. ¡®Mirror Reflection!¡¯ Akata screamed inside of his mind.Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

    All of a sudden the area in the dantion region shook greatly. The purple rune in the sky glowed brightly and an intense aura spilled out of it. Akata¡¯s face greatly paled and blood dripped out of his mouth. But even though this happened he still continued on, pouring more power into this attack.

    He rotated his red rune in an attempt to power it. He found out that it actually strengthened and brought more pressure upon the sealing effect. Thus, Akata was able to use his cultivation base now. He hurriedly poured his mortal cultivation base in and then his plant cultivation base. After that the pressure increased again. With bloodshot eyes, Akata went all out to power the purple rune, pouring in his mental energy, nature energy, and the energy from his gold rune, all to strengthen the purple rune. He was determined to break free from this sealing effect.

    The ground shook violently as the purple rune started to spin around slowly. Then it started to speed up and spin faster and faster. Akata¡¯s eyes twinkled and he coughed up a mouthful of blood. The pressure from the purple rune right now weighed down on everything in the dantion region. It was even enough to sway the sealing effect a bit. But that bit allowed Akata to do one thing¡­ raise his hand.

    Akata slowly raised his hand toward the sleeping white tiger, struggling the whole way. With great effort he managed to point at the tiger. After coughing up another mouthful of blood, he grit his teeth and hoarsely said, ¡°Descend!¡±

    All of a sudden the land seemed to crack in places. The pressure from the purple rune doubled and then tripled sending massive shockwaves rumbling out. The shockwaves made the patches of green on the sleeping white tiger tremble slightly. A voice spoke out clearly with disbelief.

    ¡°What?! You¡¯re able to break away from my Plant Life Seals technique?! How in the hell are you able to do that?!¡± The plant cultivator screamed out. As he was speaking, his voice kept decreasing in volume until finally he trailed off and you couldn¡¯t hear his final words. That was because his mouth was gaping open and he was staring wide eyed at the purple rune. No, he wasn¡¯t looking at the purple rune, but what was coming out of it instead.

    Right at this moment a giant fingernail could be seen descending from the purple rune. It was about five meters wide and slowly left the purple rune. After a bit of time, the finger became visible as well. It was simply enormous, about the size of the head of the sleeping white tiger.

    What shocked the plant cultivator most was not that the finger was so massive or that it was descending, but the fact that whatever the finger was doing, so was Akata! Akata could be seen also slowly bringing his finger down, not because he wanted to make it dramatic, but because it took a lot of effort from him.

    His face riddled with sweat, Akata endured his rapidly draining energy and let his finger approach the sleeping white tiger. The finger was so massive that even when it was within a meter of the white tiger, not even half of it could be seen out of the purple rune.

    Finally, the finger touched the sleeping white tiger. The tiger started to tremble as it was washed over with boundless nature energy. That¡¯s right, nature energy.

    Akata was using the finger to get close to the white tiger and sweep it over with nature energy to consume the energy of the green patches. That was his plan to get rid of the sealing effect.

    As the nature energy washed over the sleeping white tiger, it seemed to be awakening. The nature energy quickly spread across the white tiger madly absorbing the energy of the green patches. They simply had too much power hidden within them.

    A small patch that was only half a meter wide already contained more foreign life force within it than what Great Priest Bambe had in his whole body. And there were tens of green patches, if not hundreds of varying sizes.

    Luckily, Akata had poured all he had to give in order to fuel the finger and therefore everything within the finger was strengthened to a whole new level. This included his nature energy which rapidly absorbed the green patches and turned it into energy for himself.

    This finger was connected to Akata and therefore could be counted as an extension of him. When the finger was being strengthened by the foreign life force so was all the energy that was used to make it. That in turn returned to Akata to strengthen his energy as well. As of this moment all of his energy ws being strengthened at a rapid degree.

    His nature energy, mental energy, mortal cultivation base, plant cultivation base, red rune, gold rune, even his illusion element was being strengthened at an alarming rate. In an instant his plant cultivation base broke through to Grade 4 and his mortal cultivation base to Grade 5. But even then it kept on increasing madly. After a few breaths of time his plant cultivation base broke through to the 5th Grade and his mortal cultivation base reached the peak 5th Grade.

    Not only was his cultivation base increasing at a fast rate but also his nature and mental energy. The more life force he absorbed the stronger his nature energy became, thus allowing him to absorb more faster! It was an endless cycle and even after ten minutes of absorbing madly, he still wasn¡¯t done.

    During this time he had reached the 6th Grade of the Seed Rank and the 7th Grade of the Mortal Rank. His nature energy had increased by triple and his mental energy had become much more refined. Both of his runes glowed much more brightly than before and spun faster. His Inner Element of Illusion had also become much more stronger.

    Finally, after a few more minutes, Akata was nearing the last of the life force within the green patches. By now, he completely focused on the green patches and absorbing each and every one of them. As he finally saw the last few, a smile broke across his face.

 Chapter 65: Great Lord Taple Awakens

    Even as Akata was absorbing the green patches, he could feel the sealing effects wearing off. Not to mention with his strength increasing as he absorbed the green patches, it wasn¡¯t long before he was able to freely move about.

    Both of his cultivation bases had reached the 7th Grade with his mortal cultivation base being near the peak. Although both had reached a new level of strength, he still needed to acclimate to this new level and therefore would need to rest after this sudden increase. However, that didn¡¯t deter the fact that he was currently ecstatic right now.

    ¡°I actually increased so much just now. I should be able to defeat anybody under the Earthly rank right now.¡± Akata was simply pleased with himself as of this moment. He was one step closer to reaching the pinnacle of strength, wherever that may be.

    ¡°But more importantly, those vines were truly profound.¡± A profound glow appeared within Akata¡¯s eyes. While he was madly absorbing the life force within the green patches, he was able to get a better understanding of what they were. They were actually a type of vine called Kudzu. It was a type of vine that could suppress anything under it and was found in large quantities.

    ¡°To think those vines held such sealing prowess. And they held so much life force within them. Just what figure was that plant cultivator to hold so much life force within him?¡± Akata truly wanted to know this answer. Any figure that held that much life force had to have an equal amount of power. Needless to say, they had to be extremely powerful!

    ¡°And I¡¯m not even done absorbing all of the life force, I still have the soul region of Lord Tafei¡¯s father and then the rest of the elder generation.¡± Akata¡¯s eyes were gleaming with anticipation to get stronger. But right at this moment he heard a familiar voice.

    ¡°I never would have expected for you to break free from my seal¡­ let alone in that fashion.Kid, you seem to have some promis. How about we make a deal?¡± The voice seemed to be coming from everywhere yet also right beside him as Akata heard it.

    Akata was stunned and shocked as he immediately froze. Not from any sort of sealing being placed on him, but from him currently thinking of the possibilities that could arise from this situation. He wasn¡¯t only thinking of the benefits however, as he was also thinking of the consequences.

    ¡°What kind of a deal?¡± Of course Akata wouldn¡¯t instantly dismiss the offer as he wanted a chance to get stronger.

    ¡°Haha. Well isn¡¯t this interesting. We both have things we want and yet our paths differ. But even though our paths differ our goals cross.¡± The voice lightly laughed as it sounded out.

    Akata frowned. He didn¡¯t know what this voice was talking about and as it spoke it only confused him more. He was only 13 years old after all. ¡°I don¡¯t get what you¡¯re saying so just tell me already.¡± Akata said rather bored. If this person wasn¡¯t going to hurry up he would just leave then.

    The voice suddenly stopped laughing and spoke. ¡°Alright alright! My goal is to revive myself and from what I can tell you must want to get stronger. So how about we help each other out? I can help guide you to being immortal and you can revive me, how does that sound?¡± The voice said urgently, trying to sound as persuading as possible.

    Akata¡¯s mouth immediately gaped opened. He had never even heard of someone being immortal before yet this figure was talking about it as if it was something normal. However his face quickly changed as he hid his thoughts and asked. ¡°How can you do that?¡±

    ¡°Easy. I have already walked the path of immortality to the end and therefore know how to tread it. I can help you to tread it easier and bring you to immortality. All you have to do is revive me.¡±:The voice spoke out again, this time with pride. It spoke as if it already had Akata within its grasp.Stolen story; please report.

    ¡°And how am I supposed to revive you?¡± Akata said rather dully. This was the most important part that he cared the most about. If it was dangerous to his life and ensured certain death then he wouldn¡¯t do it no matter what.

    ¡°That is also a simple matter, originally I was going to bide my time and slowly gather up more life force and then combine it all together and rebuild myself. But now that I have you, you can just simply gather some materials for me so that I can get my body back.¡± Now it was speaking rather excitedly.

    Akata went silent for a moment lost in thought. What the figure had just said did sound easy enough. And it also didn¡¯t seem to endanger his life at all. He thought for a moment and asked one more question. ¡°Even if I do get these materials how am I supposed to give them to you, and where am I to find them?¡±

    ¡°Also an easy matter.¡± The voice laughed out. ¡°I¡¯ll just come with you and tell you where to go.¡± As it spoke a sudden suction force could be felt coming toward Akata. A vortex appeared in front of Akata and inside the vortex was a strong pull.

    It wasn¡¯t pulling Akata toward it, but rather was pulling something else¡­ life force. All across the island and within the bodies of the elder generation the foreign life force that was within them was being pulled toward the vortex. It was a strong enough pull that made everyone who still had that foreign life force within them suddenly stop moving. All the fighting that was going on instantly stopped in that instant as everyone felt a weird sensation.

    The foreign life force gathered toward the vortex. Even the remaining life force within Great Lord Taple¡¯s soul region was pulled toward this vortex. All of the foreign life force then congregated to form a corporeal figure that looked more like mist than a person. The only clear thing that could be seen was a tint of green.

    ¡°Your figure in front of me is only an incarnation of your true self. Your true self should be outside this body very close by. I¡¯ll just remain inside of your body until you have the necessary materials to revive me and build me a body.¡± The mist like figure spoke jubilantly.

    ¡°Although you absorbed a bunch of my built up life force I won¡¯t hold a grudge. Consider it an initial gift out of many to come. This little gift will be nothing compared to the things to come if you agree to help me out.¡± The mist like figure spoke again.

    Akata was surprised at what he was seeing and hearing. This figure knew that he was an incarnation and that his true body was just outside. Although this might not seem surprising to many, to a young inexperienced boy such as Akata it was amazing.

    He went into a deep thought. This wasn¡¯t a simple matter anymore. If he agreed then this figure would be in his body for who knows how long, but then he would receive gifts that were even greater than what he had already gotten. But if he disagreed, then he would simply move on with life as if nothing had ever happened.

    After a bit of thought his eyes glowed with determination. Only with risk can one cultivate to a high level. So in order to reach the pinnacle of strength, he was going to take a risk. ¡°Are you the plant cultivator?¡± Akata seemingly already knew this answer but he just wanted to hear it from this figure.

    ¡°Yes I am a plant cultivator. My name is Larry. But my plantist name is Noluck.¡± Larry stated nonchalantly. He cared more about whether Akata would accept or not.

    ¡°Plantist Noluck? Why is that your name?¡± Akata wanted to know.

    ¡°It¡¯s a long story. Anyways¡­ what do you say?¡± Plantist Noluck asked anxiously.

    ¡°About the deal?¡± Akata purposely paused as if still thinking. He wasn¡¯t in much of a rush anyways now. The only thing he could say he was in a hurry for was to heal Lord Tafei¡¯s father and learn more about runes and elements. But at the moment, even that didn¡¯t entice him to hurry up right now.

    Only after a minute of silence did Akata finally voice his answer. ¡°Okay fine, I agree to your deal. However¡­¡±

    Akata didn¡¯t even have the time to finish his next sentence before Plantist Noluck yelled out with joy and immediately disappeared from his location. In the next instance he was outside of Great Lord Taple¡¯s body and was boring into Akata¡¯s true body.

    Tabet stood there mouth gaping as he saw this happening. Since he was sealed within the chambers with Akata and his grandfather he had long since just sat there watching Akata in case he started moving. When he saw this green mist appear and flow into Akata he immediately jumped up and rushed over to Akata.

    ¡°Akata! Akata! What just happened?! What was that green mist just now?! Answer me¡­ answer me now! Akata!¡± Tabet screamed out and shook Akata.

    Akata¡¯s incarnation was left there in silence by himself staring out into the dantion region. He didn¡¯t know what to do at the moment. All of a sudden he heard a loud thunderous roar bellow out behind him. He turned his head to see the white tiger raising its head and roaring into the sky. It¡¯s body grew in size and completely took up a fifth of the land that was below it. The white tiger then opened its eyes and a fearsome pressure started to radiate out. It looked straight at Akata for a moment and nodded its head and then roared again.

    The pressure exerted from this roar was too intense for Akata, forcing him to call back his incarnation. Akata¡¯s true body woke up and opened its eyes as he stared at the figure in front of him. He saw Great Lord Taple¡¯s body start emitting a golden luster of aura and radiate an intense pressure. Akata didn¡¯t even notice Tabet holding him.

    At this moment both of them were astonished at the scene they were seeing. That golden light seemed filled with righteousness and a feeling of justice. In fact it even felt¡­ holy!

 Chapter 66: One With Power and Authority

    Hundreds of runes sprung up around Great Lord Taple¡¯s body and they were all golden in color. It was a radiant gold that, when shone on people, seemed to reveal their flaws and sinister side. It revealed all truths that made it so that nothing could hide from it. It was a righteous aura that emanated from the golden runes.

    Akata had called back his incarnation and his true body became conscious once again. He was staring wide-eyed at the golden runes and the righteousness that emitted out of them. Tabet, on the other hand, wasn¡¯t astonished because of the scene of the runes, rather he was astonished because of a certain someone.

    ¡°Grandpa.¡± Tabet barely squeezed out as his eyes started to tear up. At this moment he totally forgot about Akata and turned his full attention toward his Grandpa Taple. He just couldn¡¯t believe that his Grandpa Taple was finally going to recover fully.

    All of a sudden Great Lord Taple¡¯s eyes snapped open and his pent up energy burst forth with an amazing splendor! The burst of energy instantly broke apart the chamber that he was in. Soon the beautiful starry sky could be seen. The golden light around Great Lord Taple showed brightly in the night sky looking like a beacon of light.

    The light illuminated the night sky and brought a sense of holiness to it. The blast of energy swept passed everything but for some reason didn¡¯t affect any of the Scarlet Tigers or Akata. It simply felt like a breeze when the energy swept passed them.

    Great Lord Taple eye¡¯s showed with a golden luster as he stood up, causing a massive wind to blow out around him. He then looked down at Tabet and his face turned to one of endless kindness and affection. ¡°How I¡¯ve missed you, Tabet.¡± He uttered.

    He then turned his head toward Akata and nodded his head. ¡°I have to thank you. Tell me what it is that you want and I will try my best to complete it for you. However, that will have to wait as I will have to solve this matter concerning my tribe first.¡± With that, Great Lord Taple looked up into the starry sky and vanished.

    He reappeared in the sky where he took a deep breath. The natural energy of the world seemed to be influenced by his breathing. At his cultivation base level, he could use the energy of earth to replenish his own energy and cultivation base. It didn¡¯t take long before he had regained a quarter of his strength. It would take a lot longer to completely heal himself.

    After a little while Great Lord Taple took a step forward and was right beside Lord Tafei. He looked deeply at his son and waved his hand. The wave of his hand caused his son to be drawn to his hand. He circulated some of his energy into Lord Tafei¡¯s body and almost instantly, his son came to.

    Lord Tafei slowly opened his eyes and the first thing he saw was Great Lord Taple looking into his eyes. ¡°Father.¡± He barely managed to utter. At first his mind was clouded but after a breath of time he became clear headed and steadied himself. He stood up on his own and circulated his own energy to recover his strength.

    He looked deeply at his father but didn¡¯t know what to say. It had been a long time since he had seen his father looking healthy. It took all he had to not tear up. Emotions ran over his mind and he couldn¡¯t find the words to speak.

    ¡°I haven¡¯t been much of a father to you son, due to this illness that plagued our whole tribe. And it seems that I wasn¡¯t much of a leader either.¡± As he spoke he turned his head to view underground at all of his tribe members. ¡°Things surely have changed since then and not for the better unfortunately. How will we set things right?¡±

    Great Lord Taple turned to Lord Tafei and asked. It wasn¡¯t that he didn¡¯t want to handle things himself, but he wanted to get closer to his own son. It had truly been a long while since he was able to stand and talk to his son in a normal manner. He wanted this time to be precious and he wanted to cherish this moment.

    ¡°I can¡¯t slaughter my own tribe. So instead I planned to banish them from here. Since they chose to stand on the side of Priest Bambe, then they must have a way to live for themselves and had prepared for the punishment.¡± Of course Lord Tafei wasn¡¯t a child and spoke like a genuine leader as he stated how he had planned to deal with the rebels of the tribe.Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website.

    Great Lord Taple simply nodded his head in agreement. He too didn¡¯t want to slaughter members of his tribe. They had all suffered for hundreds of years and stood together for the whole time. Just because they wanted to follow a different leader wasn¡¯t much of a big deal. What was the problem was that they had acted against their own members with intent to harm or even kill. This was what made the situation so bad.

    After Great Lord Taple nodded his head he once more turned his head to toward the underground cave that the tribesmen were located. ¡°I hereby announce that all rebels are to be banished from this island at once.¡± He didn¡¯t speak loudly at all, but when he did speak, his voice sounded throughout the whole island and pierced through the ground into the ears of everyone.

    All of the fighting ceased once they heard the voice. The elder generation had looks of shock on their faces and the younger generation looked confused as to who¡¯s voice it was that just ordered them around. Of course the younger generation wouldn¡¯t argue because they could clearly feel the power behind that voice, a power that they couldn¡¯t possibly comprehend yet.

    ¡°Gr¡­ Great Lord Taple? That was Great Lord Taple¡¯s voice!¡±

    ¡°Has he recovered? That¡¯s simply wonderful!¡±

    ¡°Our Great Lord has made a full recovery. He doesn¡¯t sound the least bit ill.¡±

    Most of the various elders were speaking their joyous thoughts at the moment with utter excitement and veneration. The only ones who were silent were the rebel elders. Their faces were clearly darker and looks of hopelessness could be seen.

    At once, as if in practiced unison, all of the elder generation reverted back to their Scarlet Tiger form and kneeled down with their heads low. Even the rebel elders bowed down out of respect. Clearly they still viewed power with respect. The younger generation also knelt down out of respect for the powerful figure, they didn¡¯t even need encouragement from the older generation.

    Great Lord Taple looked out at the kneeling tigers below him, his face blank. ¡°Leave.¡± He spoke one word, and even though it was soft, it held a deep pressure that weighed down on all of the rebels. Be they part of the elder generation or the the younger generation, they all felt the pressure from that one word. Simultaneously, all of them stood up reluctantly and made their way toward the exit of the cave.

    One person. It only took one person to change the whole outcome of this battle. It only took one person to end a whole rebellion. One person, with absolute power and authority. That was what this person represented. The fact that nobody could challenge him, made it so that no one went against him. That was what his cultivation level represented.

    At this moment, Akata was in a daze. With the hole in the ceiling, Akata could clearly see and hear Great Lord Taple. He was amazed at what overwhelming power could do in the face of a catastrophe. As Akata gazed at Great Lord Taple he heard a voice within his mind.

    ¡°Pffft, Ahaha! What a way to display one¡¯s power. Even I would feel a bit of pressure from his display of power if I was in their position. It¡¯s too bad he won¡¯t be able to make it to the level of immortality. He would truly be a great figure if he could become immortal.¡± The voice was loud and obnoxious and clearly was quite intrigued.

    Akata¡¯s eyes opened wide as shock immediately spread throughout his body. He looked around the room he was in but couldn¡¯t find the owner of the voice. ¡®That was Plantist Noluck! But where is he?¡¯ Alata thought to himself.

    ¡°Where are you?¡± Akata said aloud. His voice filled the room and caught the attention of Tabet. Tabet looked over at Akata who he still had in his grasp and asked, ¡°Who are you talking about?¡± It was at this moment that he remembered the green mist that had entered Akata. ¡°Ah! There was some green mist that entered your body, are you okay?!¡±

    ¡°Green mist? Entered my body?¡± Akata said softly his face full of confusion. ¡°Ah!¡± Akata immediately had his consciousness enter his dantion region. As soon as Tabet had said ¡®body¡¯, Akata rotated his red rune and searched his body, instantly finding something weird within his dantion region.

    As soon as he got there he was greeted by a green mist. ¡°Yoo! How you doing?! Man, that guy over there is truly fit to rule. Even though he is being so lenient right now, the pressure he is displaying causes the people to feel fear and awe at the same time. Truly wonderful! It¡¯s too bad I¡¯m not able to be housed within him. So, you¡¯ll have to do right now.¡± As he spoke, his words turned to a feeling of sadness.

    ¡°What are you doing inside of my body?!¡± Akata had one thing on his mind as soon as he entered his body. He didn¡¯t care at all of what Plantist Noluck was saying at the moment.

    Plantist Noluck gave Akata a long look and said while sighing, ¡°We went over this already. I¡¯m staying within your body until you are able to revive me and create a body that I can house. Until then, I¡¯ll be right here to guide you to immortality. It seems your memory is as bad as mine.¡± Even though it didn¡¯t look like it, the Plantist Noluck shook his head.

    Akata¡¯s eyes twitched as he heard Plantist Noluck. It was true that he had agreed to this but he didn¡¯t expect it to be like this. In truth, he didn¡¯t know what to expect. Out of helplessness, Akata just shook his head and sent his consciousness back out.

    ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡± Akata spoke as soon as his consciousness returned to his true body. He looked at Tabet and smiled cheerfully. ¡°That green mist was actually what was suppressing your grandfather. I just happened to be able to absorb it and use it for my plant cultivation base. I just had to check and see if everything was going well with it.¡± Akata said with a look of joy.

    ¡°Oh. So that¡¯s how it is.¡± Tabet let out a long sigh of relief as he heard Akata give his explanation. He was truly worried for Akata. Given that he knew about Akata¡¯s plant cultivation base, and saw the happy look on Akata¡¯s face, he simply accepted Akata¡¯s words. ¡°Well that¡¯s -¡±

    Boom!

 Chapter 67: Great Priest Bayou

    The boom didn¡¯t come from some kind of collision, rather it came as a thunderous voice. That voice was deep and shook the whole island when it spoke. It landed in the ears of every being within the island causing them to go pale. However, this only happened to the people that were loyal to the Lord¡¯s.

    ¡°Banish my people? What gives you the right?¡± The deep thunderous voice said. Although the sound of it could be heard everywhere on the island, it was actually directed at one person, Great Lord Taple!

    When Great Lord Taple heard the voice he immediately flew up into the air with an astonished look. ¡®It can¡¯t be him? Could it?¡¯ He mused to himself as he made his way toward the owner of the voice. Lord Tafei flew into the air behind him also with an astonished look.

    They both flew through the air toward the owner of the voice to confirm their suspicions. If their suspicions were correct, then it wouldn¡¯t be good. But if they weren¡¯t correct, then it would be even worse. That was because the power in the voice was no less stronger than Great Lord Taple¡¯s.

    As they made their way closer to the owner, Great Lord Taple constantly absorbed the energy of Earth to replenish his energy and recover faster. His speed in absorbing the energy of Earth was actually quite fast considering his cultivation level. By the time he actually laid eyes on the figure he was already had half of his strength.

    When Great Lord Taple and Lord Tafei laid eyes on the figure, both of them gasped out of surprise. It was actually who they thought it to be. And he wasn¡¯t alone either.

    ¡°Great Priest Bayou. And Priest Bambe?!¡± Lord Tafei uttered in disbelief. Two figures were floating in midair across from them. One was supposed to be captured in the mainland while the other he had supposedly killed. How could he not be surprised?

    Great Lord Taple was also surprised but he didn¡¯t let it show on his face at all. He simply looked calmly at the two across from him as if everything was normal. None of his thoughts could be read at the moment as he just kept silent, pondering.

    Another person was surprised too. Great Priest Bambe. He was surprised to see Great Lord Taple completely healed. He never expected for Akata to succeed. He didn¡¯t expect this because when Akata was healing him, he was paying special attention to all of Akata¡¯s movements. He soon realized that Akata didn¡¯t have the skill to heal Great Lord Taple. But who would¡¯ve known that Akata wasn¡¯t even serious when healing him?

    Originally the plan was to fake his death and get back to his father¡¯s side. That way they could quickly take over the island for themselves. But unfortunately, a figure as powerful as his own father stood just fifteen meters away from him. This immediately dampened his mood.

    When they first heard Great Lord Taple¡¯s voice sound out, they were shocked to disbelief. Priest Bambe even suspected it to be somebody else not from the tribe. However, deep down he knew that that wasn¡¯t the truth. At that moment, Great Priest Bayou and Priest Bambe, knew that their plans had to change.

    Great Priest Bayou and Great Lord Taple looked at each other calmly, not saying a word. There wasn¡¯t even an ounce of killing intent between the two, it was as if they were looking at each other for the first time. Lord Tafei and Priest Bambe, on the other hand, were the complete opposite. They brought a fierce wind as their pressure built up and swept out.

    Finally, Great Priest Bayou spoke. ¡°Taple¡­ It seems that our paths differ greatly now. From your words earlier, it seems that you don¡¯t wish to slaughter our people and I have to agree with you on that. So, instead of starting a war between our two factions, we have ourselves a duel instead. Just the two of us.¡± He spoke slowly and calmly, completely different from his voice just seconds ago.Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

    Priest Bambe looked over at his father with reluctance. This isn¡¯t how he had wanted to do things, but he knew that he had no say in the matter. He looked over coldly at Lord Tafei and spoke. ¡°How about we have our rematch?¡± He said coldly.

    Lord Tafei gave a cold snort and stated, ¡°Humph, this time don¡¯t run away with your tail between your legs.¡± With that he vanished to reappear off in the distance. Great Priest Bambe snorted coldly and followed him. Their battle instantly started, tearing down trees and kicking up rocks and dirt.

    Great Lord Taple stood there for a moment before speaking. ¡°What are the stakes?¡± He said calmly as well, closing his eyes in the process.

    ¡°Naturally nothing happens to the winner. As for the loser, they have to get off the island.¡± As he spoke he closed his eyes as well.

    For a long while they had their eyes closed in silence. Neither of them moved or spoke, it was as if they were floating statues facing each other.

    Soon, Great Lord Taple spoke, ¡°Fine.¡± With that he opened his eyes and waved his hand sending out hundreds of bright splendid orange runes to appear in the sky in front of him. They gave off a deep pressure that exploded out and crushed the forest around them. Then each rune turned into an orange ball of flame that caused the temperature in the area to intensify greatly. The crushed trees in the area immediately burst into flames and burned away into nothingness. With a wave of his finger, the hundreds of fireballs converged together and was sent flying toward Great Priest Bayou.

    Great Priest Bayou also opened his eyes and waved his hand causing hundreds of blue runes to surround his body in the air. The blue runes seemingly twinkled in the sky and then undulated as they transformed into hundreds of drops of water. Then those hundreds split to make thousands then ten thousands! Soon a giant wave of water could be seen floating in the air. Great Priest Bayou waved his finger toward Great Lord Taple sending the water in his direction.

    A giant wave of fire and water were sent barreling toward each other in an attempt to stop the other. Great Lord Taple¡¯s and Great Priest Bayou¡¯s faces were calm as they sent their attacks hurdling at each other. In a breath of time the two attacks collided in midair.

    Boom!

    The heat of the flames and the cool of the water resulted in a heavy mist forming and covering a portion of the island. The two figures still stood in their same spots as they looked at each other. Memories of their past flowing through their minds as they both simultaneously let out a sigh.

    Great Priest Bayou¡¯s eyes filled with battle intent as he raised his arm and waved it down sending a streak of tan runes flying toward his opponent. This was the Inner Element of Sand, and he converged it together to form a blade of sand that cut through trees on its way to Great Lord Taple.

    Battle intent appeared within Great Lord Taple¡¯s eyes too as he waved his hand causing green and purple runes to appear and converge together. The Inner Elements of Wood and Illusions converged to make a rune that was four times stronger than single runes. The runes converged and formed into a giant spike of wood that twisted around.

    Both attacks were sent flying to the other but the wood and illusion attack easily overpowered the sand attack. It crushed apart the sand and barreled forward toward Great Priest Bayou. In return he flashed an incantation gesture and caused a tan and aqua rune to appear and merge together. These were the Inner Elements of Sand and Healing that merged. But instead of flying out and forming an attack, they instead flew to Great Priest Bayou and imprinted itself on his sparkling gray robe and formed some armor. The armor fit right over his skin and made it look like nothing even happened to him, as if there was no armor in the first place.

    Bang!

    The wood and illusion attack slammed into Great Priest Bayou but nothing happened to him. A few cracks could be seen on his skin but they quickly mended itself together as if it was never there. The battle intent rose and so did his pressure as he waved his hand causing more runes to fly out. And in return so did Great Lord Taple.

    Back and forth the two created runes after runes and attacked and defended as they fought each other. They were simply too similar in strength, skill, experience, defense, offense, and all other things. There was no way to easily gain the upper hand early on in the fight. Countless booms rang out as their attacks collided against each other, causing more and more of the forest to be obliterated.

    By now, Akata was too intrigued at the thought of seeing four experts fight. Although the Great Lord and Great Priest were talking to each other, they intentionally let the others on the island hear them. It was a message to tell the Scarlet Tiger¡¯s that they were going to be the only one¡¯s to fight.

    Akata was so interested that he just had to come and see. He climbed out of the hole in the ceiling and could instantly see the lights of battle from far away. ¡®Wow.¡¯ he couldn¡¯t help but muse to himself. He was so immersed that he didn¡¯t even hear Tabet calling to him to come back.

    ¡°Bah! This battle is nothing. Wait until you see a real fight between experts. This, by comparison, is really lacking. Heh, and don¡¯t even mention the level that I¡¯m going to bring you to once I¡¯m done with you. These type of figures will be so measly to you that you could kill them with nothing but a glare.¡± Plantist Noluck spoke confidently to Akata.

    Akata couldn¡¯t help but shake his head at the thought of living with this being inside of him for who knows how long. But he quickly recovered and didn¡¯t respond and slowly and carefully made his way over to the fight between Lord Tafei and Priest Bambe.

    There he would start to gain enlightenment regarding runes. And be on his way to becoming stronger!

 Chapter 68: Genius of the Rune

    Akata made his way over to the battle between Lord Tafei and Priest Bambe. He was going in order to gain enlightenment regarding runes. Although he knew that his actions were reckless he was still going anyway, just because this was a once in a lifetime opportunity. He was going to make the most of this chance and become stronger.

    It didn¡¯t take long before Akata could see two figures clashing back and forth. The light of runes lit up the night sky and illuminated their bodies. Akata stopped some distance away to make sure he wouldn¡¯t be caught up in their battle.

    The pressure from them was so strong that it crushed the surrounding forest. Fire, water, wood, illusions, sand, time, and other elements could be seen flying through the air and smashing into objects. Of course, most of the damage was done to Lord Tafei and Priest Bambe¡¯s bodies, who were the focus of the attacks. As Akata watched in amazement, there was one particular aspect to the fight that he noticed was not being incorporated. He couldn¡¯t help but notice this.

    ¡°Where¡¯s the hand to hand combat? All they do is keep their distance and launch runes at each other. Although their use of runes is amazing and I can¡¯t even interpret the skill behind it, they don¡¯t get close to each other at all. I can¡¯t gain any enlightenment at all regarding physical combat at all. I would think, being beasts, they would focus more on hand to hand combat.¡± Akata couldn¡¯t help but shake his head as he watched the fight go on.

    ¡°Ah child! How close minded and ignorant you are. I could¡¯ve told you that this tribe only focuses on long range attacks and that they don¡¯t do physical combat at all. It¡¯s not because their bodies are weak, but because they have grown around the use of runes and solely focus on its applications. The sad part is that they have no true knowledge of runes and only know basic uses of them. Truly a shame. If they could learn how to fight closer or if they knew other uses of runes, this tribe could truly shine and grow stronger.¡± Plantist Noluck said with a sigh.

    ¡°Their application of runes aren¡¯t good? So they aren¡¯t using runes correctly then?¡± Akata asked in confusion. This was the first time he was actually engaging Plantist Noluck. Plantist Noluck was surprised that Akata was actually talking to him and became excited.

    ¡°Hahaha! It isn¡¯t that they aren¡¯t using runes correctly, it¡¯s just that they don¡¯t know that many methods for using runes. All they know are long range uses and even those are lacking. But even with their basic use, they rose to such power. Truly amazing hehe.¡± Plantist Noluck was jubilant as he spoke.

    Akata sort of regretted talking to Plantist Noluck but even so he listened in closely. He couldn¡¯t deny the fact that the person who was now dwelling inside of him was a powerful figure and had a lot of knowledge. It was a good thing he listened in too. Even though Noluck spoke briefly, he imparted a lot to Akata, letting the latter know that other applications of runes were possible.

    ¡°What other applications of runes are there?¡± Akata asked with a bit of enthusiasm. ¡®Maybe Noluck will actually benefit me throughout my years. Perhaps I can even reach that immortality level he was talking about.¡¯ Akata mused to himself.

    Noluck remained silent however. A complete contrast as to what he usually was. This development shocked Akata. ¡°Since I¡¯m overseeing your growth I¡¯ll leave you to find out exactly what other applications there are. You¡¯re originally a mortal cultivator, right? Then once you reach the Saintly Rank I¡¯ll tell you a special application of runes that has been lost to time.¡± He spoke calmly which was a completely different character trait for him.

    Akata also fell silent for a moment and considered Noluck¡¯s words. After a bit of thought, he considered that Noluck was thinking of his well being and therefore didn¡¯t retort him. ¡°Thank you.¡± was all that Akata could say.

    ¡°Ahaha, no need to thank me, really. I just need you to grow powerful, but if you grow off of only me, then you won¡¯t have any experience or skill, which would do more harm than good. That¡¯s all. Hehehe.¡± Noluck laughed out.The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

    ¡°Mn. Okay.¡± Akata nodded his head and looked back toward the battle between Lord Tafei and Priest Bambe. This was the only battle that he could watch without harming himself. The battle between Great Lord Taple and Great Priest Bayou was too intense. Akata wouldn¡¯t even be able to get close enough to see the fight otherwise he would get injured.

    His eyes glowed with a bright gleam as he paid much more attention to the runes. Instead of paying attention to the battle, Akata focused what made runes and what they did to the environment. He still had trouble creating runes by himself so he wanted to know what made their runes stable.

    As the battle dragged on, Akata silently waved his hand creating a core for the Inner Element of Illusions and caused an illusory aura to emanate out. The core he created was extremely basic so it didn¡¯t need much essence of illusions to fuel it. The problem was that Akata didn¡¯t know how to regulate how much essence of illusions he poured into the core. Therefore when he poured the essence into it, it caused the core to blow up.

    Boom!

    ¡°Again.¡± Akata willed himself to create another core and poured more essence into it. Each time it blew up he would look into the sky to look at the runes created by Lord Tafei and Priest Bambe to study them. Every time he did this, he gradually came closer to perfecting the amount of essence he needed.

    ¡°So that¡¯s how it is.¡± Akata focused all of his attention on the runes. He watched as the runes were formed and activated. As he looked, it seemed as if the creation and use of the runes were put into slow motion in his eyes. He could slowly see the core being developed and feel the essence of the element being put into the rune. Each core was given the right amount of essence to sustain it.

    The more complex the core was the more essence was needed to sustain and operate it. Akata saw the varying degrees of essence for each rune created. Whether they be Inner Elements or Outer Elements, each one needed a certain amount. But through watching all of the countless runes flash by him, Akata was able to further his knowledge regarding the process of creating and operating them.

    ¡°This is it? This is it! I¡¯ve finally done it! Hahaha!¡± Akata yelled out in joy. A purple rune could be seen floating in the air in front of him. It was a dim purple but even so it showed brightly in the night. It had taken a bit more than an hour to finally get the rune to last and not blow up. Akata felt extremely accomplished.

    ¡°Hmm not bad for your first time but it could still get a lot better.¡± Noluck said contently. ¡°A little more practice and you should be able to produce this level of rune without even thinking about it. You know, as I look at this rune it starts to look worse and worse. Disperse it and start over.¡± He started to become more solemn as he spoke and spoke.

    ¡°Are you particularly skilled in runes?¡± Akata asked as he waved his hand and dispersed the rune in front of him.

    ¡°Skilled? No no no, not on the level of truly skilled users. But compared to you? Hell, even compared to the Scarlet Tigers off in the distance, I am worlds above you all. A single rune from me could wipe out this whole island. Hahaha!¡± Noluck felt proud and joyful as he bragged about his skill.

    ¡°Then what can I do to improve my rune?¡± Akata asked. He wasn¡¯t the least bit displeased with Noluck because he thought what he said was reasonable. If he truly walked the path of immortals then of course he had the power to back it up. Besides, he even said that he wasn¡¯t even skilled compared to true talented users of runes. So, Alata took what Noluck said to heart and immediately complied.

    Noluck, thinking that Akata was displeased with his comment, went silent as soon as Akata asked his question. With a bit of thought he replied, ¡°Well, since you want to know so bad I¡¯ll tell you then. There¡¯s actually a simple way to know how much essence of an element is required for a core. All you have to do is imprint the core into your body. Once it is imprinted there, your body will automatically know how much essence is needed for the core.¡± Noluck said as if he didn¡¯t care about telling Akata this at all.

    ¡°Imprint the core into my body?¡± Akata went silent for a moment trying to contemplate how he was supposed to do this. After some thought, Akata had a bright idea. ¡®What if I put the core into my soul region along with my other two runes? Would that work? Well only one way to find out.¡¯

    With the swish of his hand Akata caused a core of the illusion element to appear in front of him. With another wave of his hand the core trembled and flew towards him and into his forehead. Akata entered his body through his subconscious and guided the core through his body toward his soul region. Eventually, he guided the core to a spot in his soul region by his red and gold runes.

    ¡®That should do it.¡¯ He mused to himself with a smile on his face. Akata waved his hand once more causing another core of the illusion element to appear. Almost instantly the illusion core within his soul region connected to the one outside his body and caused the essence of illusions to flow into it. The illusion essence poured into the core and caused it to shine with a bright light. It was the perfect amount of essence, not too much and not too little.

    Noluck looked at the rune outside of Akata¡¯s body and couldn¡¯t help but take a long deep look at it. ¡®His skill in runes is too amazing. Even the monsters that I encountered weren¡¯t as terrifying as him. He instantly fonud out how to imprint the core into his body. This could be considered dangerous to many people as it could backlash and cause essence power to attack your body. But not only did he succeed in doing so, he actually completed it with utter speed!¡¯ Noluck felt that Akata was a true genius regarding runes.

    ¡®He will definitely be able to revive and create a body for me. I believe it!¡¯ Noluck mused to himself.

 Chapter 69: Gaining Insights

    Akata no longer paid much attention to the battle between Lord Tafei and Priest Bambe as he was experimenting with his application of the illusion rune. However, he was paying attention to the different ways the same rune could be used. He especially paid much attention to the illusion rune.

    As the battle raged on he watched as the illusion rune was used to create clones, or cause beasts to appear, or cause the area to ¡®change¡¯. It was an amazing rune that had many uses to it.

    ¡°With all of these uses for the illusion rune, how is it not an Outer Element?¡± He said silently to himself. ¡°It¡¯s like this rune can do anything that the mind can think of.¡±

    ¡°Inner Elements and Outer Elements are worlds apart. While the Inner Element of Illusions is one of the Inner Ten, it is still pitifully weak when compared to Outer Elements.¡± Noluck said. ¡°And that is because Outer Elements are backed by the power of Heaven. The Inner Elements, on the other hand, are only capable of using the power of Earth. This use of power clearly draws the line between the weak elements and the powerful elements.

    Yet, that is just only one of the many things that make Outer Elements fundamentally stronger and better than Inner Elements. I would tell you more but you should probably figure these things out for yourself.¡± Noluck sounded quite pleased with himself as he gave his answer.

    ¡°Oh come on, please tell me some more. Just anything will do. I want to learn all I can about elements and runes that I can. Just one more bit of information would do.¡± Akata forced out a loving and begging face while trying to sound deeply affectionate. It wasn¡¯t that he truly cared about getting this information, rather, he felt that this information was key to him becoming stronger even faster.

    Noluck was silent for a moment and then let out a hearty laugh. ¡°Ahahaha! Well if you insist then how can I not comply. Sure sure I¡¯ll let you in on one more piece of information. Each Outer Element has a pair that matches up with it. The matchup doesn¡¯t have to be compatible as it can also be highly resistant toward the other. For example, the fifth pair of Outer Elements, the Path of Essence, is made of the Outer Element of Holy and the Outer Element of Demonic. The holy element and the demonic element are extreme polar opposites, yet they come together to form a perfect pair.¡± Noluck sounded joyful as he spoke.

    Akata committed this information to memory and then thought for a moment. ¡°Umm¡­ Noluck, I¡¯ve learned about this already. Can¡¯t you tell me anything new?¡±

    This was true as Tabet had told him all about the pairs of outer elements before. Although he didn¡¯t go into as much depth as Noluck, Akata could still get the gist of it even before Noluck started to explain.

    ¡°What? You already know this? Then did you know that some Outer Elements are stronger than others?¡± Noluck asked curiously.

    ¡°Wha?! No! How? Aren¡¯t they all at the same level?¡± Akata felt very intrigued by this bit of information that Noluck had casually dropped.

    ¡°Well just like the Inner Elements can be divided into groups that classify the strong, so can the Outer Elements. In the Inner Elements, there are the Inner Ten, which consist of the top ten strongest Inner Elements. They are classified the strongest by the amount of energy from Earth that they receive. The Outer Elements are somewhat the same way.

    In the Outer Elements, the pairs are grouped by weakest to strongest as well. The fifth pair, the Path of Essence, is actually the weakest pair of Outer Elements one can wield. While the first pair, the Path of Presence, is the strongest. Nobody knows why some Outer Elements are stronger than others, that¡¯s just the way it is.

    Well, that¡¯s all I¡¯m saying now. You got your bit of information from me, now you have to get the rest on your own. I can¡¯t baby someone to the realm of immortals. Otherwise you¡¯ll be killed easily by others.¡± Noluck seemed to have a cold gleam in his eyes as he spoke to Akata. But that gleam quickly disappeared. It wouldn¡¯t have mattered though as the mist covered up his whole entire body.Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings.

    Akata sat there silently thinking to himself. He was taking in all of the information that he had just heard. He knew that this would be very important down the line and he definitely didn¡¯t want to forget any of this at all. After a brief moment his eyes showed with an anticipating gleam. ¡°I need to hurry and learn how to use my Outer Element. That will make my battle prowess rise off of the charts.¡± He was expectant to start learning about runes and truly step into the world of runic magic.

    Soon he calmed himself and cleared his mind. He focused in on the battle and looked at the whole thing with his gaze. He wasn¡¯t going to miss a single detail from Lord Tafei and Priest Bambe. After a few moments passed, Akata would make a new rune and tweak it a bit, each time having it improve little by little.

    In this fashion, a few hours went by quite fast. Akata sat with a hand outstretched and a bright purple rune within it. The rune was exquisite and showed brightly in the night sky. Soon, it began to rotate slowly, and out of the rune came an illusory hand. It greatly resembled Akata¡¯s finger but it was easy to tell that it wasn¡¯t his. As this one was blurry and faded in and out.

    He was practicing his Mirror Reflection skill but obviously on a much smaller scale than before. Even though it was on a much smaller scale and looked blurry, it was actually pretty resilient and tough. It could also be strengthened by Akata¡¯s energy, becoming much more stronger.

    Akata closed his hand and crushed the rune making it disperse into sparkling tiny dust. He wasn¡¯t destroying the rune but was instead turning the element of illusions into the element of sand!. Akata waved his hand and caused the sparkling purple and tan dust to spin around and form a cyclone. The cyclone then split apart into two, then into four, and finally ending in five. After a moment the five cyclones started to bend inward and rush forth, where they converged together into a fist.

    Akata had been watching the battle for some time now and had gained some insights into the Inner Element of Sand. Therefore he was now capable of wielding the element of sand, albeit only a little bit. However, even that little bit was enough to put him in a class of his own. He was actually capable of mixing two different elements together, thus making the fused element four times stronger than normal ones.

    ¡°So that¡¯s how it is then.¡± Akata had a smile on his face as he stood up. He waved his hand causing the illusory sand fist to disappear. ¡°I¡¯ve learn all that I can from these two. It¡¯s just a shame that Priest Bambe isn¡¯t that good at controlling the Outer Element of Time otherwise I could probably gain some insights to that too.¡± Akata shook his head and sighed.

    Akata could tell that the element of time was an Outer Element because of the energy that it put out. It was much greater than all of the other elements that were being released. It completely outclassed the other elements, whether it came to speed, power, or resilience.

    Priest Bambe¡¯s use of the Outer Element of Time was just too basic. Even he himself didn¡¯t have many insights into the element of time. This caused all of his attacks to be quite easy to defend against or even outright destroy. Thus, Akata wasn¡¯t able to gain much of any insights regarding time.

    Akata looked out into the distance and saw flashing colors everywhere. The battle between Great Priest Bayou and Great Lord Taple was still raging on with fierce abandon. In fact, it had even gotten more fierce as time went on. Akata could see the lights of the runes being displayed from their fight.

    ¡°If only I can get over there to see the fight between those two. I¡¯m sure that I will be able to gain a lot more from their fight than I did from these two. Tabet¡¯s grandfather even has an Outer Element, and given how powerful he is, I¡¯m sure he has much greater skill in it than Great Priest Bambe.¡±

    Akata was very conflicted right now. Right now, he was missing a great opportunity to obtain important information and probably gain insights into a heavenly power. It might even be the Outer Element that he is innately skilled in, the Outer Element of Souls. But, if he did go then he would be putting himself into a dangerous situation, possibly threatening his life. The battle there was just too chaotic.

    Even though these thoughts went through Akata¡¯s head, they only briefly stayed before flashing away. Akata grit his teeth and dashed off in the direction of the brilliant lights in the distance. As he got closer the pressure from the fighting figures and the attacks weighed down heavily on him. Akata felt his bones begin to crack as the pressure was literally crushing him. It took all the effort he had to rotate his mortal cultivation base and plant cultivation base and resist the pressure. Even with that Akata was barely able to get into a distance where he could see only one figure in the distance.

    ¡°I have to get closer than this.¡± Akata said as blood started to ooze from his mouth. He clenched his teeth and rotated his red and gold runes as he pushed himself harder to get closer. It was a tough struggle between the pressure and Akata¡¯s willpower.

    ¡°Hehe. What a tough battle of attrition, but¡­ I don¡¯t like to lose or back down!¡± Akata pushed his energy to the max as he made his way closer and closer to the battle between Great Lord Taple and Great Priest Bayou. After a while, Akata finally stopped advancing and sat down forcefully. He was gasping for air but even so a smile was on his face. ¡°I made it into a good range.¡±

    From his position he could see the battle between the two clearly. This was because their battle had destroyed most of the vegetation and trees making a clearing. Of course Akata wasn¡¯t seated in the clearing but a little ways off from it. He could have gone further but then he would have to expend and even greater amount of energy to sustain being there.

    Here, he could spend a reasonable amount of energy to resist the pressure and still have a clear mind to gain insights. ¡°Time to get to work.¡±

 Chapter 70: End of the Battle

    The first thing Akata instantly noticed was the golden runes that Great Lord Taple used in battle. They brought a sense of holiness to the surrounding area making everything shining under its light feel as though it were blessed. Akata felt a sense of awe while he was looking at the runes and immediately understood what it was.

    ¡°An Outer Element huh? His use of it is way better than Great Priest Bambe¡¯s use of time. Is this the Outer Element of Holy? There¡¯s no question about it, it has to be that. Nothing else can possibly be this blessed.¡± As Akata watched the holy runes dance about he came to a conclusion.

    ¡°The Outer Element of Holy is a rune that only does righteous acts. It cleanses the air around it, it purifies the souls of living beings, and it exorcises all things it sees as evil. Only a pure soul would be able to wield it to its full potential. The more pure of heart someone is, the stronger the skill and the deeper the understanding that person will be have. Is this for all elements or simply Outer Elements?

    Regardless, it is something that I can¡¯t possibly begin to understand on my own just yet. I have to have a deeper understanding of elements and myself in order to gain that kind of knowledge.¡± Akata knew that he wasn¡¯t at a level where he could comprehend the secrets of elements, not even the basic secrets. But if he were to grow stronger and understand more, he would gradually unlock these secrets.

    Akata stared off into the distance focusing on the runes that Great Lord Taple and Great Priest Bayou created and wielded. Their use of runes were much greater than Lord Tafei¡¯s and Priest Bambe¡¯s use. Their runes were used in offense and defense, debuffing and buffing, trickery and straightforward attacks. Because of this, Akata made great strides in learning about runes.

    He would see runes used as armor, or a shield. He would see runes take different shapes and sizes depending on the situation. He would also see multiple runes be put together, thus creating astonishing power. It was a magnificent sight to see, yet that was all Akata could do was see. The pressure was so great that Akata just couldn¡¯t actually practice making any runes for improvements. He could only focus his mind on resisting the pressure and looking at the battle.

    However, even though he couldn¡¯t practice making any runes, Akata was still delighted. He could always practice making runes later anyways, so why would that discourage him? His eyes were bright as he watched the runes dance across the area. They didn¡¯t look as resplendent as before because the sun was just coming up, bringing along rays of sunlight. But to Akata, they were just as colorful and bright.

    An hour passed by quickly and the fight between the two were calming down. It might have seemed as if the two were equal considering how long they fought, but in reality Great Lord Taple was always on the offensive with Great Priest Bayou defending most of the time. The only reason he lasted this long was because his defensive skills were just too great.

    By now, Great Priest Bayou¡¯s armor that was made from the Inner Elements of Sand and Healing was crumbling apart. He was breathing heavy but his face was calm as he looked Great Lord Taple in the eye. He waved both of his hands and caused a scintillating light of tan, blue, and silver runes to explode forth. These were the Inner Elements of Sand, Water, and Light respectively. They combined together to form a giant head with an open mouth.

    The giant head shot forth toward Great Lord Taple in an attempt to devour his whole being. He, in return, waved a single hand causing hundreds of golden runes to appear around him in a grand fashion. The runes then glowed brighter and brighter until they burst and spread their golden light everywhere. The golden light then converged into a giant hand that shot forth and attempted to grab the giant head.

    A giant hand and a giant head were shooting toward each other. The head consisted of a combination of three different runes, thus making it nine times stronger than regular runes. But the hand, on the other hand, was made of an Outer Element.Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

    Boom!

    A huge wave of energy washed over the area causing hundreds of trees and vegetation to be upturned and destroyed. Akata himself was also sent flying back. When the two collided, it was obvious which one would come out the victor. The hand struggled at first to crush the head but was still able to do so.

    In fact the only reason it struggled at first was because of the Inner Element of Light that was within the head. Great Priest Bayou knew that his efforts were in vain but he decided to try his luck anyways. In fact, he wasn¡¯t really skilled in the Inner Element of Light. This was because he was more skilled in the Inner Element of Darkness. But if he used that element then the holy element would have instantly and easily destroyed his attack.

    Great Priest Bayou shook his head and sighed. He knew he was fighting a losing battle from the start. He didn¡¯t attack any further but instead looked out at the land around him. With his cultivation base at the Temporal Rank, he could easily see through the land and look at the tribe members below. He sighed again and spoke, ¡°I have lost. Please, don¡¯t resist and come.¡± He waved his hand and collected the tribe members that followed him. When they heard his voice, the tribesmen instantly knew what had happened. They didn¡¯t resist as they allowed themselves to be collected by Great Priest Bayou.

    Priest Bambe was also collected by Great Priest Bayou as well. He gave Lord Tafei a long glance before sighing and vanishing. He also knew that he couldn¡¯t beat Lord Tafei easily, in fact, he didn¡¯t know if he could beat him at all.

    Great Lord Taple watched silently and calmly as Great Priest Bayou collected the traitorous tribe members. He watched as they vanished completely. He didn¡¯t try to stop Great Priest Bayou at all. Eventually Lord Tafei appeared at his side also looking at Great Priest Bayou, except he had a complicated look. This was once a great figure in his heart but now¡­ things had changed. Finally he sighed and vanished.

    The two figures looked at each other for a while before Great Priest Bayou spoke out. ¡°Be wary of the mainland. I thought that I would have the power to make our tribe rise in strength but it seems that it will be you doing that instead. I happened to escape, but I¡¯ sure they will be looking for me soon. And that means that they will come for you as well. Be prepared, I would hate to see a part of my tribe destroyed.¡±

    Great Lord Taple nodded his head and said, ¡°You would be in more danger than I am. For now on, my tribe will be called the Scarlet Rune Tribe.¡± He said calmly.

    ¡°And mine shall be named the Runic Tiger Tribe.¡± Great Priest Bayou said slowly. ¡°As agreed I will take my leave. I do hope in the future that you are able to survive and prosper.¡± With that, Great Priest Bayou turned and flew off into the distance. Great Lord Taple sighed internally and turned around facing his tribe. Although they couldn¡¯t see him since they were underground. He gave them a long look and then turned his head to look in another direction, he took a step and vanished from his spot.

    He reappeared a bit of a distance away to see broken down trees and rocks. These weren¡¯t the cause of his battle or any other battle, but because a person was sent flying through it. This person, of course, was none other than Akata.

    Akata could be seen gasping for air and seriously injured. That blast had sent him flying through the air and into many trees and rocks. His body was broken and mangled in different places and blood was everywhere. His arm was even twisted beyond recognition but somehow he was still alive.

    Great Lord Taple immediately waved his hand sending out aqua and blue runes toward Akata which combined together. These were the Inner Elements of Healing and Water respectively which combined together to form a ball of soothing calm water. The water surrounded Akata and his body was enveloped by it. His injuries were visibly healing at a fast rate but that was only his wounds. His bones were still mangled and twisted and his organs were slowly healing themselves from being crushed.

    When Great Lord Taple saw Akata still alive he breathed a huge sigh of relief. If it wasn¡¯t for him then he wouldn¡¯t nearly have enough strength to stand let alone fight. It was thanks to Akata that he was free from that poisonous life force that invaded his body, dantion, and soul. He didn¡¯t know how to repay Akata for his efforts but the least he could do was make sure that he survived to receive some gifts.

    He didn¡¯t wait there for Akata to heal as he moved himself and Akata into the secluded chamber where Tabet was still located. He put Akata on the ground and waved his hand causing a wave of golden runes to appear. The golden runes flew toward Akata¡¯s body and burrowed into it giving him a golden aura. The golden rune mixed in with the healing water and gave it a golden tint.

    The healing effects of the water instantly improved greatly. This was because instead of a combination of two runes, there were now three. This made the strength nine times stronger than a regular rune. It was also combined with an Outer Element thus creating an even more astonishing effect. Akata¡¯s bones were now repairing themselves and his organs were healing at a fast rate. Akata¡¯s condition improved dramatically as he recovered at an extremely fast rate.

    Soon, Akata¡¯s eyes twitched as he slowly opened them. When he did he found himself staring at complete and utter darkness. However, he felt the existence of two people close by. Both of these people felt familiar to him though. ¡°Tabet and¡­¡±

 Chapter 71: I Will Achieve My Goal

    ¡°Tabet and¡­ Lord Tafei? What¡¯s going on?! I can¡¯t see anything at all.¡± Akata could barely speak and he was stricken with complete fear. Even though he knew he had opened his eyes, he was still surrounded by darkness. It was something that caused a hidden fear that dwelled within him to seep out. Most people would never have this fear surface but to go from being able to see to complete blindness was a terrifying experience.

    ¡°Akata!¡± Tabet yelled out and was about to rush toward him when his father stopped him in his place. Tabet stopped and then looked at Akata sadly.

    Lord Tafei took a step forward and then spoke. ¡°Akata¡­ I thank you for your services and I am very sorry for what has happened to you. We weren¡¯t able to heal all of your wounds therefore¡­¡± Lord Tafei paused for a moment before speaking up again. ¡°My father, Great Lord Taple, would like to speak to you now. It¡¯s best to head there when you are capable as soon as possible.¡± With that, Lord Tafei turned around and headed for the doorway.

    Tabet just stood there taciturn. He really didn¡¯t know what to say as of this moment and therefore just left it up to silence to help communicate with Akata. Inwardly he sighed and gave a consoling look to Akata.

    Akata was able to hear the words of Lord Tafei and could understand them clearly. At first he didn¡¯t know what he meant but then he inspected his body to find out that¡­ he was also missing his right arm. Fear swelled up within him again, he instinctively tried to move his right hand but didn¡¯t feel a thing. Akata could feel his pupils constricting but still couldn¡¯t see anything. His heart clenched with an intense feeling of fear. This was fear that he had never felt before.

    ¡°I¡­ I¡¯m blind. And¡­ my arm¡­ it¡¯s gone now. How can I be a cultivator now? Heh. A cultivator? How can I even be a regular mortal now? I¡¯m just useless. I can¡¯t do a thing now.¡± Akata said these things aloud and tears started to stream down his face. He was only 13 years old, yet he was now incapable of even taking care of himself. It felt like he would never again be able to live his life.

    ¡°A¡­ Akata.¡± Tabet took a step toward Akata but then didn¡¯t go any further. In his mind he felt as if this was all his fault. ¡®I should¡¯ve stopped him from going when I had the chance. I should¡¯ve just dragged him back and kept him from going to the battle. I knew that he would get hurt yet I let him go anyway. Stupid. STUPID! I¡¯m so stupid.¡¯ Tears started to roll down Tabet¡¯s face as well as he stood there.

    ¡°Young Akata come here.¡± A voice resounded within the room and both Akata and Tabet heard it. Simultaneously, they both snapped out of there pained state of mind. One second they heard the voice and the next second Akata had disappeared.

    ¡°Grandfather.¡± Tabet spoke out softly as Akata vanished from his sight in an instant.

    Akata appeared within the secluded room along with Great Lord Taple. He could sense the immense pressure radiating off of the person he was in the presence of and therefore concluded that it had to be Great Lord Taple. Akata wiped the tears from his face and then said in a low voice. ¡°Thank you Great Lord Taple for saving me.¡±

    ¡°BAH! If it wasn¡¯t for you putting yourself in danger none of this would¡¯ve happened in the first place! Now look where it¡¯s gotten you. You¡¯re blind and you lost an arm. If I didn¡¯t appear when I did I don¡¯t know how much worse it could have gotten. Maybe you could have died, then what? How would I have repaid you then? Gah! Damn children these days, always doing things without thinking. It¡¯s amazing that so many of you make it into adulthood. Humph.¡±

    To Akata¡¯s surprise, Great Lord Taple was actually scolding him. He had thought that Great Lord Taple would provide some comforting words or even some knowledge of hope but instead he had done the complete opposite.

    Akata was left without a word in his thoughts of how to respond. All he did was look out blankly and wait for Great Lord Taple to continue. It was a good thing he had more to say, otherwise it would¡¯ve become awkward for him.

    If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

    ¡°So you managed to survive but where did that get you? Can you even be a cultivator anymore? Scratch that. Can you even be a regular mortal now? You¡¯ll probably need somebody to take care of you for the rest of your life all for what you decided to do. I heard the whole story from Tabet and what you did was just plain stupid! I can¡¯t even begin to think of where you got the idea to go out into a battle that was nowhere near the level you¡¯re even remotely at. And another thing¡­¡±

    Akata listened on and on to Great Lord Taple scolding him and criticizing his actions for a long time. By the time he started to slow down two full hours had already passed. Yet, even though he slowed down that didn¡¯t mean he stopped. It was as if he was finding things to complain about to Akata. The worst part about it was the fact that he didn¡¯t keep his voice down at all. His thunderous voice could be heard from all parts of the island, making sure that each and every Scarlet Tiger was capable of hearing Great Lord Taple scold him.

    At first everyone was confused and a slight fear rose up within them. But as the scolding went on and on, it was made clear to them that the one being scolded wasn¡¯t one of their own, but Akata. This made the Scarlet Tiger¡¯s ease up and even get a bit of laughter in as well. It had been a rough few days since the battle and tensions had been rough but now, they were slowly releasing those tensions and pent up emotions.

    Great Lord Taple saw this a great opportunity to hit two birds with one stone. He could tell of Akata from the rash behavior he had and also ease the hearts of his tribe members. Of course, those that weren¡¯t great at leading or weren¡¯t experienced enough wouldn¡¯t notice this, but those who did notice had a sense of awe placed in their hearts from the actions of Great Lord Taple.

    ¡°He truly is a great leader.¡±

    ¡°Only he could come up with something as great as this.¡±

    ¡°Father¡­ you are the absolute greatest man that I have ever met or known. I am so proud to be your son.¡± Lord Tafei was amongst those who were able to pick up on the clues. Tabet was beside him and confusion washed his face when he heard his father speak. Lord Tafei looked over and rubbed the top of his son¡¯s head. ¡°You¡¯re learn when you¡¯re older and more experienced. Your grandfather is a great leader.¡±

    It might not seem like a big deal to ease the hearts of his tribesmen but it was absolutely essential in having the power of his tribe rise. If they were still depressed after losing half of their tribe, then how would they find the right mind to cultivate and get stronger? Would they even want to get stronger? With this simple action of his, Great Lord Taple paved the way for his tribe to get back into the mood to get stronger and come closer as a whole.

    After another hour or so Great Lord Taple finally stopped scolding Akata. Akata had his head lowered for a long while and when Great Lord Taple finally stopped talking, he slowly raised it up. He could sense the direction of a huge amount of energy and therefore guided his head in that direction. So, even though he couldn¡¯t see, his head was still facing directly at Great Lord Taple.

    ¡°That¡¯s all the scolding that I have for you.¡± Great Lord Taple¡¯s voice became much calmer and lighter. This time it only resounded inside of the secluded room. He gave a long sigh and then spoke. ¡°Before I would have complied with teaching you about runes but now¡­ it seems that I¡¯m no longer able to do that. Runes are about guiding the elements into a specific pattern in order to have them make an effect. But what would be the use of teaching you if you aren¡¯t able to use them in battle or even everyday life?

    Although your cultivation base was injured it can still heal completely given enough time. Your soul also didn¡¯t take any damage so your life will be spared. The only problem is the fact that your Earth Veins have been damaged a little. But even that little is enough that making runes will be substantially difficult.¡± Great Lord Taple shook his head.

    ¡°My Earth Veins are damaged?¡± Akata asked in confusion. ¡°What are Earth Veins, I¡¯ve never heard of them before?¡±

    ¡°Earth Veins are what allows us cultivators to guide the energy of Heaven and Earth and make it possible to use. The cultivation base allows us to gather that energy while the Earth Veins guides that energy. The higher the cultivation, the more energy you could gather and therefore the more energy you could guide. But, with your Earth Veins being damaged, it will make it way harder to guide that energy and almost impossible to make runes. That¡¯s because runes require the perfect amount of energy to be used, and if your veins are damaged it will be that much harder to get that perfect amount of energy.¡±

    Akata listened intently to what Great Lord Taple was saying as this was critical information. As he finished listening to all of it he slowly took in a breath full of understanding. From the words of Great Lord Taple, it truly was pointless in teaching him about runes. There would be no use if he couldn¡¯t even make them. Akata let out a long deep sigh and shook his head bitterly.

    ¡°But¡­ you could possibly learn some magic. Magic uses any amount of energy which makes it popular among today¡¯s cultivators. Although it¡¯s different from runes, they do share some similarities. I¡¯m sure that you can learn it.¡± Great Lord Taple said calmly. Deep in his heart however, he was hoping that Akata would give up on being a cultivator. He was truly appreciative of Akata for saving his tribe and he didn¡¯t want him to put himself in more dangerous situations.

    ¡®I¡¯m terrible at magic though. Ugh. This is my fault. If only I didn¡¯t go out into the battle, then I wouldn¡¯t have gotten hurt. So¡­ should I try to learn magic or should I¡­ ¡¯ Akata was silent for a long while contemplating on what he should do. He really did want to be a cultivator but he knew that it would be a much more perilous road now more than it had ever been.

    After a moment Akata took in a deep breath and his dull eyes gleamed with decisiveness. ¡°I want to become the strongest cultivator and reach the pinnacle of strength. I don¡¯t care what obstacles come my way, whether if it¡¯s losing and arm, losing my sight, or even losing my life. I will become the strongest, that way I can look down and make reality fair for all people. Reality will try to make it hard on me but even still, I WILL achieve my goal even if I have to give up on this reality!¡±

 Chapter 72: Magic and Runes

    Great Lord Taple looked deeply at Akata for a while before silently shaking his head. He wasn¡¯t shaking his head out of disappointment but out of satisfaction and approval. He let out a hearty laugh that was filled with eagerness. ¡°Well then, I can say that I didn¡¯t expect for your resolve to be that strong. How could I possibly go against such a resolute feeling that you have. Let us begin then! I¡¯ll teach you all that I know about magic then. Come come let¡¯s get started right now shall we?¡± Great Lord Taple¡¯s mood was increasing as he spoke to Akata on and on.

    Akata turned his head in the direction of Great Lord Taple with wide and dim eyes. He was ecstatic that Great Lord Taple was going to support his decision to the fullest and wasn¡¯t going to try and discourage him at all. Akata bowed down and said, ¡°Thank you Great Lord Taple for your concern and care. I will remember this always.¡± He said earnestly.

    ¡°Mn. Good. No more wasting time now let¡¯s get started. There is much to learn.¡± Great Lord Taple nodded his head and started to teach about magic immediately. ¡°Magic and runes, on a basic level, are essentially the same thing. They both use the energy of Heaven and Earth in order to influence the area around them. Whether that be changing the landscape, creating an elemental change, or even using it for cooking, Magic and runes all can do this.

    Runes have been used since the beginning of time to do these things while magic was created by mortals to copy the effect of runes. So it can be seen that magic is a much newer way to influence the area around you. It can also be said to be easier to use. However, even though it is newer and also easier to use, it can be said to be on the same level of power as runes and sometimes even more powerful.

    The way magic and runes are enacted can be seen as a huge difference as well. Runes use a set amount of energy in order to be performed, while magic can use any amount to perform the same spell. This is also a reason why magic is much easier to perform. The greater amount of energy you pour into the magic spell the more power that spell will have. This is why some magic spell can have much more power than runic spells.

    Mortals are basic creatures, meaning that they like things with simplicity. That is how I have come to view them. And because of their basic nature, they have become much more powerful in a much more easier way. They saw runes as complicated way to wield the elements of Heaven and Earth, so they created magic. They simplified the application of runes in order to wield the elements easier and produce greater power. This can be seen as terrifying and outright defying intelligence. No other race has thought to do this, but the mortals, they thought of this.

    Their intellect is why they are the most powerful race in the world. Runes use a symbol in order to guide the energy of Heaven and Earth and perform a spell. But instead of doing that, mortals thought to wield the energy of Heaven and Earth directly. Magic, uses the energy in our bodies to affect the world around us and pick out the elements to use. They thought that since our bodies were born into the world of Heaven and Earth that our innate energy also came from there. Since that was the case then we should be able to affect the energy of Heaven and Earth using our own bodily energies.

    And do you know what that energy is called today? Our immortal energy! The energy that comes from our cultivation bases is what can affect the world around us. The mortals thought about all of this and created magic. The skill that could rival runes. Mortals truly are magnificent creatures indeed. Ahh, you are definitely lucky to be one.¡± Great Lord Taple looked at Akata with a hint of envy and awe.

    Akata couldn¡¯t see the look in Great Lord Taple¡¯s face, but if he did he would find it similar to his own face. Akata sat there listening to Great Lord Taple with amazement and wonder. He wondered who were the supreme mortal beings in the past that thought like this. He was amazed that mortals were so strong. He was¡­ proud to be a mortal!

    In his short few years of life this was his first time truly being proud of being who he was. He had a new sense of glory right now and felt as if nothing on the planet could topple his position of being a mortal. Mortals of the past created something that actually rivalled the ancient ways! How many other races could say that they did something as astounding as that? None! His pride right now was beginning to grow at an exponential rate. It wasn¡¯t until Great Lord Taple spoke again that he calmed himself down.The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

    ¡°Now now I¡¯m rambling on too much. Let me get to the true point about magic. And that is how to use it. Magic directly uses the energy of Heaven and Earth to control the elements and use them. In order to do this you must use your cultivation base power to connect with the energy of Heaven and Earth and influence the elements. Now, to influence the elements, you have to become accustomed to it and gain a deeper knowledge regarding it. Meaning, you have to gain enlightenment. The more enlightenment you have towards a certain element the more power you can bring out of it and the easier it is to use.

    I myself have a bit of enlightenment regarding the Inner Element of Fire. But even still, that doesn¡¯t mean that I can put it into use. To do that I have to create an ability of some kind that can use fire and apply my fire to it. But doing so is extremely hard to do and therefore not many can do this. You would need an extremely deep insight regarding an element in order to create an ability to use. Luckily, the mortals back then were powerful figures and created many techniques that could be used. Some of them profound and powerful, others were weaker and allowed for many to train in it. I actually have some techniques that I came across and have even trained in some. Here take a look.¡±

    Great Lord Taple waved his hand and a space ripple appeared above it. Soon a small stack of books appeared within his hand. Some of the books were thick and others were really thin. But each one had a faint profoundness emanating off of them. He handed it over to Akata but then stopped. An awkward look appearing on his face. ¡°Oooh.¡±

    Akata still sat there the same as he had been but his eye twitched a bit. ¡®Take a look? But I can¡¯t see anything, how am I supposed to take a look at the techniques? Don¡¯t tell me he is playing with me?¡¯ Akata¡¯s eyebrows scrunched up together as thought about this.

    ¡®Oh crap! I forgot that he can¡¯t see a thing. How could I forget about something so relevant as this. I must have gotten caught up in the moment of teaching that I totally forgot about his condition. Ugh. I got to think of something fast and figure out a way to teach him some techniques even though he can¡¯t see.¡¯ Many thoughts were running through Great Lord Taple¡¯s mind. He was rapidly thinking of a way to teach his new blind student.

    ¡®I can¡¯t think of anything that can help him!¡¯ He thought. ¡°If only you had divine sense or something of the like.¡± Great Lord Taple said aloud towards Akata.

    Akata raised his head up and said, ¡°I have nature sense, will that work?¡± He asked in a rather confuses manner. He didn¡¯t know how divine sense could work and since nature sense was pretty much the same, he didn¡¯t know how that would work either.

    ¡°Ah! You do? Perfect it will work just the same. Instead of showing you the manuals of the techniques, I¡¯ll perform the techniques and have you sense the minute details within them through your nature sense. Although it is a rough way to teach you, it should still work with you. The only problem is I can¡¯t use all of these techniques because some of them I have no talent for.¡± Great Lord Taple sighed and shook his head.

    After a moment he raised it up and looked at Akata. ¡°Are you ready? Send out your nature sense then and I¡¯ll perform some of the techniques that I know.¡± He waited until Akata was ready and then he began to grow a yellow ball of fire in his hand.

    Akata could sense the fire¡¯s warmth and could feel that it was different from normal fire. Through his nature sense he could see the exact shape of the fire. With his nature sense Akata could detect all the things around him. Although he couldn¡¯t actually see them he could feel the existence of everything, whether they were living or not. This was the nature part of nature sense, it could feel the existence of everything that was born or came from within nature.

    ¡®Why didn¡¯t I think to use this before? Although I still can¡¯t see anything it feels as though I¡¯m apart of nature itself when I use my nature sense now. Almost like I am constantly meditating.¡¯ Akata felt a sense of ease rush over him. His anxiety of being blind had eased greatly, but it still hadn¡¯t fully diminished. Even still, most of his worries were gone. The only problem was the fact that he couldn¡¯t constantly have his nature sense out since it was so draining.

    ¡®I have to find a way to have my nature sense become strong enough that I can let it last forever. That way being blind won¡¯t be bad at all.¡¯ Akata was truly at bliss right now. He continued to look over the yellow fire within Great Lord Taple¡¯s hand and discovered many secrets regarding it.

    If one had just looked at it, it would seem as if it were just normal fire, just a bit yellow. But through his nature sense, Akata found out that it wasn¡¯t so simple at all. He sensed the change in the energy of Heaven and Earth around the fire and could tell that the energy had a sort of mixed relationship regarding the fire. At times the energy wouldn¡¯t go near the fire other times it would bolster it. Clearly, magic had a mixed relationship with the energy of Heaven and Earth.

    Akata couldn¡¯t help but be amazed once again by mortals of the past. They created something that defied the laws of Heaven yet, still made it possible for Heaven to support them. It was truly a strange and awe-inspiring notion.

 Chapter 73: Inner Element of Fire

    Akata ¡°looked¡± closely at the yellow fire with his nature sense. Not only was he inspecting the energy around the fire but was also inspecting the fire energy itself.

    ¡®The Inner Element of Fire is too profound. It has the capabilities to turn things into ash and even incinerate the ash. It has varying degrees of heat in which it can actually be cool enough to touch. Not only does it have abilities to destroy but it can also help. It brings light to the environment and warmth to certain things.

    This yellow fire seems to have other qualities to it that makes it unique from other types of fire. Yet, I can¡¯t tell exactly what kind of qualities they are. It seems that I would have to gain a better sense of fire in order to discover its secrets.¡± Akata couldn¡¯t help but be amazed. The Inner Element of Fire was so profound that he couldn¡¯t even discover the basic secrets of it from this simple fire in front of him.

    Akata just sighed and shook his head. Although the Inner Element of Fire was outstanding and was very profound, he didn¡¯t think it matched up to his personality. He just didn¡¯t see himself truly wielding the power of fire to its full effect.

    He turned his head to face Great Lord Taple and then spoke, ¡°I¡¯m finished with looking at the fire. It is truly profound and I can barely even gain any insights regarding it. I can tell that this is just a simple fire yet it has many secrets hidden within it that I won¡¯t be able to discover anytime soon. Are there any other elements that you could show me? I don¡¯t think the Inner Element of Fire is suited for me.¡± Akata was respectful when he spoke.

    He didn¡¯t want to come off as being rude or sound as if he didn¡¯t care for the fire. He was very grateful for the fire and found some insights regarding it but he just didn¡¯t have any talent for it.

    Great Lord Taple showed a face filled with surprise. He was surprised at how fast Akata managed to gain some insights regarding the fire. It had only been a few minutes since he had first shown the fire, yet Akata had already gained some insights and found that he wouldn¡¯t be particularly skilled in it. It must be known that even geniuses would take a few days to gain some insights and figure out if they were skilled with an element. It had even taken Great Lord Taple himself two full days to gain enough insights regarding this fire in order to freely use a bit of it.

    He gave Akata a once over then spoke. ¡°Tell me some of the insights that you gained when contemplating this fire and then I will switch over to the next element.¡± His tone had turned rather serious as he spoke to Akata. This caused Akata to gain a sense of fear within him.

    He took a gulp and then said, ¡°Fire is not eternal yet it is also eternal. It can be physical or intangible. This is because a fire doesn¡¯t have to burn in the world, it can also burn in the body. The fire you showed me held a deep emotion of holiness. It is probably something that you incorporated yourself, whether intentionally or unintentionally. Whichever the case, that sense of emotion came from the fire that burns in your heart.

    An eternal fire exists within you, while the non eternal fire exists in the world. The intangible fire exists within your heart, while the physical fire exists within the elements. Even though the two fires differ, they can be seen as the same. That is because of the core of fire. What makes a fire, fire is the fact that it glows. It shines on all the things that can be illuminated. Whether that is the grass, trees, forest, your emotions, or even the Heavens themselves, fire is meant to shine.¡±

    Akata gave his answer of the insights he gained about fire in the short amount of time that he had contemplated the fire that Great Lord Taple had produced. It was a deep insight that he had gained but to Akata, it seemed as if it wasn¡¯t worth much. Some experts in the Inner Element of Fire would never even reach this level of insight in their whole lives yet Akata was able to do so within a short few minutes.If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.

    Great Lord Taple was very astounded and his face was full of shock. The level of insight that Akata had gained could be considered enough to make him an expert in the field of fire, yet Akata had said that the Inner Element of Fire didn¡¯t suit him. Then, if Akata did find an element that suited him, what would his insights be then?

    Great Lord Taple took in a cold breath as he thought about this. ¡®Genius!¡¯ This was the only word that could surface within his mind when Akata finished speaking. His insights truly were deep and profound, but Akata himself found it to be nothing. ¡°I¡¯ll show you a different element tomorrow. For now, I want to see if you can actually create a fireball. Use your cultivation base to connect with the energy of Heaven and Earth and influence the Inner Element of Fire. Given that you are able to use nature sense it should be fairly easy to conjure up a fireball.

    I¡¯ll show you once more how I conjure a fireball. Pay close attention to the energy disturbance and how it makes a fireball. If you are able to do so then I will move onto another element tomorrow.¡± Great Lord Taple waved his hand and caused a fireball the size of a fingernail to appear in his palm. Then in the span of ten breaths it grew to the size of a head. He threw the flame down onto the ground and then turned to leave.

    ¡°I¡¯ll be back tomorrow to see if you can make a fireball. Good luck.¡± With that Great Lord Taple left the room, leaving behind only Akata and a fireball.

    In truth he was actually wanting Akata to reconsider taking up the Inner Element of Fire. He believed that Akata didn¡¯t know what he was thinking and that he would be wasting his time trying to figure out a different element. If he was already a genius in the Inner Element of Fire why would he need to look into other elements?

    He had given Akata a day to conjure a fireball. This could be considered an extremely short amount of time even for geniuses. Even a person who had insights into the workings of a blade couldn¡¯t perfectly wield it when they had no prior experience. The same logic would go for magic practitioners. Even if you had knowledge on fire that didn¡¯t mean you could just start to produce it. This was what Great Lord Taple was going for. He wanted Akata to spend more time on fire as he was a super genius.

    Akata sat there with his nature sense wrapped around the fireball on the ground. He had tremendous insights regarding fire but that didn¡¯t mean he instantly knew how to make it. He tried different things such as waving his hand, thinking of heat, and even touching the fire, but none of that worked.

    He frowned and then said, ¡°Noluck, do you know how to make a fireball?¡± He was going to ask Noluck the best way to make fire. With his knowledge it would surely be an easy feat to teach him. But what he got in return wasn¡¯t an answer but silence.

    Noluck was silent and if his body wasn¡¯t made of mist you would be able to see his face was blank with shock. He was still in shock from what Akata had done. Great Lord Taple had been in shock, but Noluck was even more shocked than him.

    Great Lord Taple didn¡¯t understand all that Akata had said because the insights Akata had gained in that little bit of time were actually greater than his own. Akata¡¯s insights had surpassed Great Lord Taple¡¯s insights in the Inner Element of Fire. The only person who could actually ascertain the level of Akata¡¯s insights was Noluck. Only he could understand Akata¡¯s meaning behind his thoughts of fire.

    The amount of time he had used to gain this tremendously deep insights were impossible to describe even to Noluck. He had never heard of a monster like Akata, not even in legends. Yet, he was even more surprised to find out that Akata didn¡¯t feel like he had much skill in it.

    Dwelling inside of Akata he had a better understanding of Akata than anyone else, even Akata himself. He could tell that Akata didn¡¯t have much skill in the Inner Element of Fire, yet that fact, actually made him go cold. If he wasn¡¯t talented in fire, then what level would he be in something that he was skilled in? This thought crossed Noluck¡¯s mind multiple times.

    After a few more times of his name being called he finally answered.

    ¡°Noluck?! Noluck are you sleeping? Answer me! How do you make a fireball?¡± Akata yelled out.

    ¡°Ah! A fireball is fairly simple to make actually. It will actually be even easier to you than others. Just use your nature sense to feel for the Inner Element of Fire and use your cultivation base power to recreate that feeling.¡± Noluck replied blandly.

    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you answer before?¡± Akata said while focusing his nature sense on the fire in front of him. However, he frowned as he didn¡¯t know what to do next. ¡®I don¡¯t want to keep asking for help so I¡¯ll try this on my own. He said to recreate the feeling with my cultivation base power. But it¡¯s not working at all.¡±

    He thought for a long moment before coming to a new conclusion. ¡°Ah!¡± Akata waved his hand causing his hellfire to come out and then mixed it in with the yellow fire in front of him. The two fires immediately came together and the yellow fire was quickly consumed. Akata knew that one fire was going to go out but didn¡¯t know which one. But now he had an idea for creating fire through magic.

    He had an eternal shard within him that contained the demonic hellfire he had cultivated some time ago. But drawing upon that and actually creating fire through magic were two different things. A smile crept upon his face as he waved his hand causing a yellow flame to appear in his palm..

 Chapter 74: Genius By Nature

    A yellow flame appeared within Akata¡¯s palm as he focused in on it. This flame didn¡¯t look exactly like the flame Great Lord Taple had created as it had a red-black tint to it. It also felt a bit more sinister as well. Soon, the fire in his palm winked out and disappeared.

    ¡®These two fires differ greatly. My hellfire is devilish and that other fire is holy. But even so, the two fires are fire after all. Hehe. Given a bit more time I should be able to recreate that other fire easily.¡¯ Akata thought to himself.

    Noluck watched as Akata conjured a fireball in his palm. It was a bit crude but it was still a fireball. ¡®He used his connection of hellfire to feel for the Inner Element of Fire. Having his hellfire to extinguish the yellow fire let him slowly and surely feel the core of the yellow fire as it was burned away. Even if his own hellfire was the one to be burnt away, he would still be able to feel the core of the fire as it overpowered his own hellfire. Truly a genius.¡¯ Noluck couldn¡¯t help but be amazed at the actions of Akata.

    Hellfire, although weird, wasn¡¯t mainly made of the Inner Element of Fire but the Inner Element of Darkness. This was because it came from the Underworld. Fire was meant to burn the souls of the evil beings of the Underworld, to combat that, the powerful figures of the Underworld created an ability that would extinguish that fire of light and heat, their own fire made of darkness. Thus, Akata actually had more knowledge of the Inner Element of Darkness than in the Inner Element of Fire before he started to contemplate the mysteries of it.

    Woosh!

    Another fire winked out of Akata¡¯s palm as he tried to light another fireball. He was slowly but surely acquiring more and more knowledge regarding the Inner Element of Fire and how to summon its power using magic.

    In the blink of an eye five hours passed by. Akata sat down with his eyes closed. He sat still with his palm facing up on his lap, his breathing was calm yet held an intense heat to it. In fact, his whole body radiated a searing heat as he sat there. He sucked in a huge breath and all of a sudden a yellow flame gathered upon his hand completely engulfing it. It was a brilliant yellow flame that glowed with a holy light. Akata let out a deep slow breath and the yellow fire slowly retracted and was soon gone.

    ¡°Eh. This is boring me now. Well I already have the ability to summon fire and it is pretty fun actually! I wish I knew how to use magic before, it would¡¯ve really helped me out before.¡± Akata¡¯s bright mood was only dampened by the thoughts of just now figuring out how to use magic.

    ¡°Maybe I can get back to practicing with the scythe. I must be rusty by now.¡± Akata slowly stood up and stretched a hand out. A wooden staff with a black metal curved blade appeared in his hand. A red symbol could be seen on the scythe and as it glowed so did Akata¡¯s red rune.

    Akata swirled and waved the scythe around in a familiar manner. ¡®Let¡¯s see how much stronger I have become.¡¯ Akata stopped swirling the scythe and stood still with it in his one hand. He looked straight up and took in a deep breath. He spread his nature sense out and focused his ¡®sight¡¯ on the ceiling. He swung the scythe straight into the air and a huge slashing arc of black scythe light beamed forth toward the ceiling instantly tearing a hole through it. It didn¡¯t stop there as it proceeded to turn the ground it passed through into a rotten black and making it crumble.

    ¡°Woah.¡± Akata¡¯s eyes went wide as he studied the blow of his scythe through his nature sense. He hadn¡¯t even put all of his strength into that blow yet it had caused so much damage. Akata¡¯s strength the last time he wielded the scythe was at the 4th Grade of the Mortal Rank, but now he had risen to the 7th Grade and also cultivated in the Plant Realm and also made it to the 7th Grade there. His strength more than double and even more than tripled. His strength also seemed to have an extra effect on the scythe as it gained a rotting ability.The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.

    Akata couldn¡¯t help but be surprised by this as he stared at the hole in the ceiling through his nature sense. Subconsciously he inched backwards and held his breath. He was even frightened of his own strength at the moment, it was just too terrifying.

    Noluck also was amazed at Akata¡¯s strength, even though he didn¡¯t know the insane growth Akata went through, he was still amazed at the level of strength he had just displayed. He was even more in awe of the fat that Akata didn¡¯t use all of his power just then.

    ¡°Ahahaha! You truly are a blessed cultivator. Not only do you have tremendous talent when it comes to comprehending, gifted when it comes to cultivation, you are also lucky when it comes to gaining abilities and weapons. If you live long enough you will definitely become a resplendent figure in the eyes of many.¡± Noluck was extremely happy. The more talented Akata was, the more likely capable he would be able to revive himself.

    Akata just continued to stare at the hole in amazement. ¡®I should keep my true strength a secret. If others find out how powerful I am it will be disastrous. It might end up like it did with Xiun Wu sending assassins after me. And by that time, those assassins will definitely be more than capable to killing me.¡¯ A strange light began to shine in his eyes.

    ¡°No. I will dominate all things that bar my path. Anything that doesn¡¯t fit me will just have to go! The only way to truly make a clear path for myself is to be strong enough to pave the way.¡± Akata said with a clear decisive tone.

    ¡°And what is it that fits you? Why exactly do you want to become strong in the first place? Is it to protect someone, to dominate others, have anything you want? Just what is your goal. In this short amount of time that I¡¯ve seen and been with you, you have been rapidly increasing your strength and I just want to know¡­ for what?¡± Noluck said with curiosity.

    Akata went silent. The whole room he was in became silent to the point that he could hear his own soft heartbeat. What was he getting stronger for? It was a simple question that he thought he had the answer to, but with Noluck asking it was as if he had his answer erased. Was it to keep his promise to Peizhi Xiuying? No, it had to be deeper than that otherwise he wouldn¡¯t be so driven to get so strong. Was it to dominate others? Definitely not. Then what was it he thought to himself.

    ¡°Why do I want to become stronger?¡± Akata repeated the question to himself silently. He thought in silence for a long moment before lifting his head and speaking. ¡°I don¡¯t know why I want to become stronger. Looking back when I was a bit younger I always wanted to be a cultivator. Seeing the Elders flying through the skies, and witnessing the marvelous power they wielded, it fascinated me. But I can¡¯t exactly say that it drives me to become stronger. Right now I just don¡¯t know the answer but maybe later I will.¡± Akata gave his honest answer and went into more thought.

    Now, he too wanted to know why he was so desperately pursuing a great amount of power to become unrivaled in the world. He still wanted to reach the pinnacle, he had wanted to do that even before Peizhi Xiuying suggested it. And now, he was treading that path yet¡­ he didn¡¯t know why he was exactly. This actually bothered him a bit as he sat down and frowned.

    Soon, a little less than a day passed and Great Lord Taple showed up to the room Akata was in. Akata had been given his own room which had been carved out by Great Lord Taple himself. Only he and Akata could come in freely, the only way for others to come in would be if they were invited by Great Lord Taple himself, not even Akata could let them in.

    By Great Lord Taple¡¯s side was Tabet. He rushed toward Akata and smiled merrily. ¡°Akata it¡¯s great to see you!¡± he said very jubilantly. He then looked over Akata¡¯s body and saw his missing arm and his face filled with a sense of sadness. He then looked into Akata¡¯s eyes and saw that they were too dim. As if he couldn¡¯t see at all. This caused Tabet to feel even more guilt for not stopping Akata that day.

    Akata saw and felt Tabet¡¯s mood change through his nature sense and he decided to speak happily. ¡°I¡¯m great hehe. I even learned how to do magic thanks to your grandpa. He is a really great teacher.¡± Akata said. He then waved his hand and caused a yellow fire to create a trail in the air and then disappear.

    ¡°Ah!¡± Both Tabet and Great Lord Taple were astonished when they saw Akata casually make the yellow fire appear. Creating and element through magic was a very hard thing to do. That is why it usually took a long time of familiarizing yourself with the element before one was able to summon it. There was no exception from this, even geniuses had to take time in studying elements before being able to produce, not even mentioning the fact of casually conjuring it. Yet Akata, was able to do just this.

    Not only had Akata just started learning about magic, he had just started practicing with the Inner Element of Fire not even two days ago. Yet he was already able to casually conjure up a fireball with ease. This was a level of talent not even geniuses could measure up to.

    Akata merely smiled and said full of respect, ¡°Great Lord Taple, I still think that I am not suited for the Inner Element of Fire and would like to try a different element please.¡± Akata bowed toward Great Lord Taple expressing his thanks.

    Great Lord Taple simply nodded his head.

 Chapter 75: Rivals

    Great Lord Taple was too astonished. If even Noluck was surprised by Akata, it could be seen how lost in thought Great Lord Taple was. He gave Akata a deep look and then said, ¡°I see. Well you have done what I said and I¡¯m sure that you have thought over what I said as well, so let¡¯s see if you are better adept at other elements.¡± In truth, Great Lord Taple just wanted to see if Akata was monstrously talented in other elements besides fire. If he was then¡­ he himself didn¡¯t even know what to think after that.

    ¡°I¡¯m not that well versed in using elements in magic but I can use the Inner Elements of Fire, Light, and Illusions. My skill with fire is the greatest with light being a close second. I had only gained enough knowledge to use illusions just before the tribal incident with the plant cultivator, thus I don¡¯t have too much practice with it.

    The other Elders of the tribe have some knowledge on other elements and how to use them in magic but their knowledge isn¡¯t that deep to teach others. Also, most of them focus on either water or fire and since you have great knowledge of fire most of them won¡¯t be able to help you.¡± Great Lord Taple blatantly stated. While he was speaking he paid close attention to Akata¡¯s look, only to see that it hadn¡¯t changed at all.

    He was looking to see if Akata would be excited or disappointed but neither of those came. If he was excited then he would only teach Akata one more element and come up with an excuse to get him to only learn about two. Because he didn¡¯t want Akata to grow tremendously more powerful. If Akata was excited to learn more of the various elements then that would mean that he was expecting to learn all of the secrets of the tribe. Likewise, if he was disappointed then that would mean that he expected more from the tribe to teach him. And that wouldn¡¯t be good either.

    Other less important figures wouldn¡¯t see it as a problem to help Akata grow since he had saved them from certain death, but to the powerful figures, Akata was still a mysterious person that showed up on the island out of nowhere. And, while he might not be plotting anything, the people who sent him here could be. Thus, the powerful figures kept a close eye on Akata.

    But Akata wasn¡¯t excited nor was he disappointed. In truth, Akata wasn¡¯t interested in any of the elements that Great Lord Taple had just named. Fire wasn¡¯t a big interest for him, light countered his insights into darkness so he didn¡¯t feel like contemplating that for now, water was also an element he felt he had no skill in, and while he had some talent in illusions, he didn¡¯t want to pursue the path of it. Thus his face held no signs of anything at all. It made it seem as if he was weighing his options and not rushing the decision.

    ¡®This kid is amazing. Even with his talent he still values the important aspect of choosing what is right for him. He doesn¡¯t make rash decisions and carefully weighs his options. It¡¯s just a shame that he wasn¡¯t born a Scarlet Tiger in my tribe, otherwise he would be able to truly grow to great heights.¡¯ Great Lord Taple praised him silently in his thoughts.

    ¡°Thank you for your concern Great Lord Taple, may you teach me about the Inner Element of Illusions?¡± Akata thought to learn about illusions as a way to help him improve upon some skills that he already had such as his Shadowfeet movement skill, his techniques in the World Omen of Lord Dullahan, Mirror Reflection, and Demonic Wraith. All of these had some applications that could be improved through the use of illusions. Akata had even begun thinking of ways to incorporate runes into them.

    ¡°Inner Element of Illusions? Well sure you can learn about that.¡± Great Lord Taple was actually surprised once again by Akata. Illusions weren¡¯t considered as an attack type skill or a defensive skill. Rather, they were more like a control type skill, but instead of controlling the opponent they controlled an area. However, not many people would train in illusions do to it not being very capable in battle since most people on the same level of you could easily see through an illusion and break through it. Thus, it wasn¡¯t a big deal to teach Akata about this.

    ¡°I don¡¯t have any skill books regarding anything about illusions but I do know some techniques that I came across while adventuring through a forest. It was very profound and I eventually managed to comprehend enough to conjure up the power of illusions. This will be perfect, Tabet you come listen in as well.¡± Great Lord Taple turned to his grandson who was still wrapping his mind around Akata¡¯s display of fire. It was just too amazing to him.Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit.

    ¡°Ah! Yes grandfather.¡± Tabet woke from his stupor and went to stand beside Akata. They both sat down and listened to what Great Lord Taple was saying.

    ¡°The Inner Element of Illusions has no end to it at all. There are countless ways to use it just like the other various Inner Elements. However, the Inner Element of Illusions is not like any of the other Inner Elements and that is because it is not real. As the name implies, everything that is conjured up from the Inner Element of Illusions is illusory. Whether you create a huge figure of yourself, or create clones, or alter the image of your surroundings, nothing is real. Yet, even though nothing is real it can cause the people who experience it to feel as if what they are seeing is real. As if what they are experiencing is actually happening as they witness it. Thus, powerful illusions spells can be important in battle.

    Finding enlightenment of illusions is very difficult to do, coupled with the fact that it doesn¡¯t have much effect on powerful beings or people on the same level as you, not many people choose to contemplate enlightenment regarding illusions. However, I¡¯m sure that you both will be able to comprehend it easily and figure out how to use it with magic. Tabet, you¡¯re already capable of using the Inner Element of Illusions in runes so you should have it a bit easier than Akata here.¡± Even though Great Lord Taple had said this he didn¡¯t feel confident backing it up. And neither did Tabet feel that he would be able to outdo Akata.

    ¡°Tabet I¡¯ll get you started first since you have more knowledge on illusions than Akata. In order to create magic using the Inner Element of Illusions you must¡­¡±

    Akata on the other hand was thinking silently to himself while also listening to the words of Great Lord Taple. ¡®He said that the element of illusions isn¡¯t real but when I used my Mirror Reflection skill I was able to physically touch and affect something. Is this possible with something illusory?¡¯ Akata thought to himself. Just before he was about to ask his question he was interrupted.

    ¡°It would be wise to keep that ability to yourself. You don¡¯t want to let others know that you are capable of turning illusions into reality. It is something that only immortals skilled in the Inner Element of Illusions can do. So until you are able to become an immortal, don¡¯t let others know about that ability.¡± As if sensing Akata¡¯s intentions Noluck voiced out within Akata¡¯s dantion region.

    Akata instantly went silent and asked internally. ¡°What does it mean to turn illusions into reality. That¡¯s like making something from nothing, it shouldn¡¯t be possible.¡± Akata said full of confusion.

    Noluck just laughed out, ¡°Hahaha, you¡¯re still too young and inexperienced. You¡¯ll only understand when you have more knowledge and are capable of figuring this out on your own. Even if I took a thousand years to explain it to you, you still wouldn¡¯t be able to understand.¡±

    Akata just sat there. In truth he felt that he wouldn¡¯t understand even if Noluck decided to explain. It sounded like a topic that completely surpassed his comprehension and knowledge at the moment. Akata just sat there and listened back in.

    ¡°... Okay.¡± Great Lord Taple finished explaining things to Tabet and focused his attention on Akata. ¡°Now, Akata you have to gain some comprehension towards Illusions. So first thing we have to do is get you to gain some insights regarding it. But how¡­ it¡¯ll be very difficult considering you can¡¯t see anything.¡± Great Lord Taple went into deep thought.

    ¡°It¡¯s fine. I already have a basic understanding of illusions.¡± Akata put a hand in the air and caused a purple rune to appear glittering with light. The aura of illusions was wafting off of it. ¡°However, I would probably need a deeper understanding of illusions to truly use it in magic.¡± Akata said indifferently.

    Once again Great Lord Taple and Tabet looked at the rune in surprise and utter shock. They hadn¡¯t expected Akata to be able to pick up the Inner Element of Illusions so quickly, yet he was already capable of producing runes? And his runes weren¡¯t weak either, they were seemingly perfectly made and were resilient. Probably only someone who was at least two Grades above him could destroy it.

    For once, instead of feeling in awe of Akata for his achievements, Tabet instead felt a fear rise up. Akata was just too talented of a figure, he was a true genius¡­ no the word genius was too low of a title for him. There simply wasn¡¯t a word to describe how gifted Akata was. Tabet¡¯s eyes filled with an intense glare as he hurriedly turned his head and went back to work trying to conjure up illusions using magic.

    ¡®I can¡¯t let him surpass me no matter what! I¡¯m the genius of the Scarlet Tiger Tribe¡­ no¡­ the Scarlet Rune Tribe! I¡¯m 18 years old and am already at the Great Circle of the Docile Rank, given a bit more time I will break through to be in the Beast Rank. I can¡¯t just let some mortal surpass me like this.¡¯

    Tabet had built up some animosity toward Akata and a bit of tension was created. However, it wasn¡¯t cold and ruthless but one that was closer. Almost like a sibling rivalry of some sorts. Akata could feel it and unconsciously focused his nature sense in the direction of Tabet. Then he smiled.

 Chapter 76: Battle of Elements

    Akata¡¯s smile caused Tabet to lose his focus momentarily but then his face washed over with a smile as well. It wasn¡¯t that he no longer cared about making sure Akata didn¡¯t surpass him, but he knew that Akata himself saw it as a challenge to surpass Tabet himself! It was rivalry between the two, one had to surpass the other and the other had to make sure they weren¡¯t surpassed!

    Great Lord Taple obviously saw the exchange between the two and thought that this would be very beneficial to Tabet. If Tabet wasn¡¯t met with resistance then he wouldn¡¯t grow as fast. He had already reached the Great Circle of the Docile Rank at age 18 which was really fast, then how fast would he be if he actually pushed himself? This thought made Great Lord Taple smile himself.

    He then continued on, ¡°Well then Akata since you know how to create runes using illusions then we might as well move you along to the magic portion as well. I¡¯ll do what I did with Tabet and show you an illusory spell, although I don¡¯t know if you¡¯ll be able to sense it with your nature sense.¡± Great Lord Taple waved his hand causing a yellow fire to appear, only this time it didn¡¯t emit any heat or anything. It was as if it wasn¡¯t even there only the image of it was present and that too seemed to be not there.

    Even though it was illusory Akata still picked up traces of it using his nature sense. His face instantly became one of focus as he studied the illusory fire. He was putting his full attention towards understanding illusions, and gaining insights regarding it. He thought about how it was different from his use and idea of illusions and mentally tested out his conjectures. By doing these things and more he was rapidly learning more and more about the Inner Element of Illusions.

    Tabet saw the intense focus from Akata and immediately went back to work himself. He too had an illusory yellow fire in front of him. Unlike Akata, he was already familiar with the basics of using illusions in magic and had come into contact with illusory yellow fire before. His insights were tremendous as well to go along with the time he spent on studying it.

    The only reason he was here was so that he could check up on Akata. Who would have thought that not only was he doing just fine, he was actually growing stronger at a rapid pace. It was as if losing an arm and his sight was nowhere near enough to even be called a setback for him.

    The two sat quietly while contemplating the mysteries of illusions. In roughly ten minutes of time Akata let out a long breath ¡°Whew.¡± This caught the attention of both Tabet and Great Lord Taple. Akata smiled and said, ¡°I¡¯ve pretty much accumulated all of the insights I could gain from this illusory fire. The next step should be to use it in magic, correct?¡± Akata asked.

    At these words Tabet would have originally looked down on Akata but after learning and seeing how fast Akata could comprehend fire and use it in magic, he didn¡¯t dare to counter him. Instead he grit his teeth and focused back in on the illusory yellow fire in front of him.

    ¡°Yes that is correct. But before you do how about you and Tabet here have a Battle of Elements in the Inner Element of Illusions. This should help both of you further your knowledge on the element and be beneficial to you too when trying to conjure it with magic.¡± Great Lord Taple didn¡¯t want Tabet to lose his confidence and drive so he offered a battle of elements.

    ¡°A Battle of Elements tests one¡¯s use of a particular element, whether that be fire, or wood, or even holiness. It would show how one would use an element in battle or everyday life through the strength output, timing, speed, duration, quantity, all of that. In short it showed all a person was capable of doing with a particular element.¡± Great Lord Taple said to Akata.

    ¡°You aren¡¯t allowed to severely injure your opponent and no killing. All other things are permitted. How does that sound?¡± Great Lord Taple looked toward Akata and said calmly. He wanted Akata to accept and give his grandson a chance to build his confidence back up.The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

    Akata could obviously see through Great Lord Taple¡¯s intentions and actually thought highly of him. ¡®It¡¯s great that he still puts family first even when teaching. The clan is more important than a single outsider anyways.¡¯ Akata found no problem with the way Great Lord Taple was acting and instead smiled and nodded his head, ¡°I accept.¡±

    If Akata could see through the ruse of Great Lord Taple then obviously Tabet could too. He watched as his grandfather spoke about the Battle of Elements and saw Akata agree. A Battle of Elements was normal in his tribe as all of them focused their efforts on honing their skills with runes and elements. The deeper your insights into elements were the more powerful your runes would be so Battles of Elements were held quite often. To say the least, Tabet was accustomed to participating in them.

    ¡®Well maybe this won¡¯t be a bad thing. I¡¯ll at least be able to see what kind of insights Akata gained in this short amount of time, it can¡¯t be that much considering he only spent ten minutes contemplating the profoundness of it.¡¯ Tabet mused to himself.

    But in reality, Akata didn¡¯t even spend ten minutes on the illusion. He had really only spent a bit more than half that time on the illusionary aspect. The other time was spent on how Great Lord Taple perfectly mixed the Inner Elements of Fire and Illusions together in harmony. Akata was intrigued by this and spent some time pondering over it. If Great Lord Taple knew this he would have passed out from the surprise in his heart.

    Both Tabet and Akata stood up and walked toward Great Lord Taple. ¡°First let¡¯s go outside and find a wider space than in here.¡± Great Lord Taple waved his hand causing Tabet and Akata to be swept up and then he himself took a step and appeared outside in the area that he and Great Priest Bayou had fought. It was a spacious place now thanks to their battle and was perfect for people to spar in. In fact other Scarlet Tigers were there already sparring.

    When they saw Great Lord Taple arrive they all stopped what they were doing and immediately bowed down and greeted him, ¡°Greetings Great Lord Taple!¡± They yelled out in unison. Great Lord Taple nodded his head in response. He then waved his hand and caused Akata and Tabet to appear on the ground in front of him.

    ¡°This should be the place where your battle of elements will take place. Here you don¡¯t have to worry about space and you both can move and act freely. There¡¯s no need to worry about bystanders either as I will set up a barrier to prevent your attacks from harming others. In other words go all out.¡± Great Lord Taple said calmly as he waved his hand causing a giant golden rune to appear below Akata and Tabet and then a golden shield springing up around them. It was a dome shaped light that covered over them and an area of a hundred meters.

    ¡°That¡¯s Young Lord Tabet and that must be Akata.¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s the one that healed all of us and saved us from certain death.¡±

    When the surrounding Scarlet Tigers saw Akata and Tabet appear they once more bowed down. They bowed down because of respect and awe for the two of them.

    ¡°Look an area is being cut off for them, are they going to duel?¡±

    ¡°Is it going to be a Battle of Elements?¡±

    ¡°I wonder what element they are going to use? Young Lord Tabet is adept at wood, illusions, light, and fire. But what about Akata over there? Can he even use an element?¡±

    ¡°Who know¡¯s¡­ he was the hero that saved our whole tribe from death. He may even have talent in fighting as well. His cultivation is a alright though as it¡¯s at the 7th Grade.¡±

    Conversations sprang up as the Scarlet Tigers discussed what Tabet and Akata were going to do. It was almost guaranteed that it was going to be a Battle of Elements as that was mostly the only kind of sparring the tribe did. And since Great Lord Taple was overseeing it, it was certainly going to be a spectacular duel between the two figures. The only question the now audience had in mind was what element was going to be used.

    A few others had displeased looks on their faces as a mortal was facing a tiger in one of their traditional activities. Although they felt grateful for Akata, they still didn¡¯t want to get too close to a mortal for reasons already known. However, even those figures who had those thoughts were still interested in the outcome of the duel between the two. One was the future Lord of the tribe and also the genius of the younger generation. The other was the mortal who saved the whole tribe from death. Obviously these two were exalted figures.

    Even though they were both exalted within the tribe, Tabet obviously had all of the tribe supporting him for the win. He did actually belong to the tribe after all, it was only right that they supported him over Akata. But even still nobody booed Akata as that would be crossing the line of not just Great Lord Taple, but of the whole tribe itself.

    All in all everyone was anticipating the Battle of Elements. Some even rushed back to the cave in order to inform others of the showdown that was about to ensue between the two exalted figures. Thus in a short amount of time lots of tribe members came to view the duel, even the Elders, Lady Haque, and Lord Tafei. All of the tribe had come to watch this Battle of Elements!

 Chapter 77: Master Illusionist (1)

    Akata and Tabet faced each other within the golden rune barrier. It wasn¡¯t a barrier meant to break apart their attacks completely but was developed from Great Lord Taple¡¯s Outer Element of Holy and meant to purify their attacks and nourish anyone who was hit by it. This would increase that person¡¯s strength by a small amount and was thus beneficial. Of course it was only a small amount since the barrier was so huge and had to be spread out.

    A crowd surrounded the barrier and peered inside to see Akata and Tabet. They could clearly see the two figures but the two of them couldn¡¯t see outside. All they saw was a golden wall surrounding them.

    ¡°I¡¯ve been meaning to ask your Great Lord Taple this but never got the chance so I¡¯m hoping you would be able to answer me. It¡¯s okay if you don¡¯t want to or can¡¯t though.¡± Akata said with a laugh.

    ¡°What is it hehe.¡± Tabet was clearly happy as well.

    ¡°What cultivation level is he at?¡± Akata truly wanted to know this as all he felt from Great Lord Taple and even Great Priest Bayou was an aura of pure power. ¡°And also Great Priest Bayou.¡±

    ¡°Oh that¡¯s it? I thought it was something more important.¡± Tabet laughed. ¡°My grandfather is at the Temporal Rank Grade 3 and my uncle is at the Temporal Rank Grade 2. Although he is a Grade lower he was able to somewhat hold his own against my grandfather due to his skill in runes. But either way he would still be defeated by my grandfather since he has control over an Outer Element.¡± Tabet said softly and proudly.

    ¡°Temporal Rank?¡± Akata was confused. ¡°What rank is that? How strong is that?¡± He mused to himself and asked Noluck.

    ¡°The Temporal Rank comes after the Beast Rank in Realm of Beasts. It is comparable to the Saintly Rank for mortals and the Verdure Rank for plants.¡± Noluck said while yawning. ¡°In terms of basic strength the Third Rank is at least a hundred times stronger than the Great Circle of Second Rank.¡±

    ¡°Third and Second Rank? What are those?¡± Akata asked sounding even more confused than he was before.

    ¡°Do you know anything?¡± Noluck said helplessly. ¡°Those are the names given in the order of the Ranks. There are ten Ranks for each being in immortal cultivation. The first five Ranks is considered to be apart of the Foundation Realm and the Sixth through Tenth are considered to be in the Immortal Realm. The Third Rank is still in the Foundation Realm but in terms of strength it is at least a hundred times stronger than the Second Rank. Enough enough go find out more on your own.¡± Noluck went completely silent as he finished talking to Akata.

    Akata on the other hand had his mouth gaped open as he tried to contain all of the information he was given. It could be said that his information before was like he was a frog in a well, but now it was like he was standing at the coast of a sea looking out into the horizon. It was a totally different experience. He now felt much smaller and weaker than he ever had in his life. He also felt a hidden surge of anxiousness wash over him.

    ¡®So it¡¯s like that! I have a long way to go before I truly reach the pinnacle of the world. Hehe it seems my life will be filled to the brim with adventure.¡¯ Akata was rather excited to go out adventuring now.

    Tabet took Akata¡¯s opened mouth as a sign of shock and he laughed out. ¡°Relax relax it¡¯s not that surprising, he is the Great Lord after all. My father is at the 8th Grade of the Beast Rank but soon he¡¯ll be in the Temporal Rank. And before I know it, I¡¯ll be there as well hehe.¡± Tabet was in a rather good mood as of this moment.

    Akata simply nodded his head, still shocked by what Noluck had told him. It was then that Great Lord Taple¡¯s voice came booming throughout the island.Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.

    ¡°Today, Akata and my grandson Tabet will face off in a Battle of Elements. They will contest using the Inner Element of Illusions and see who¡¯s insights in the element is greater. You all know my grandson Tabet, also known as the Young Lord of the tribe. Akata here, on the other hand, is also known as the savior of our tribe, saving us from certain death in the future.¡±

    Great Lord Taple gave a brief introduction of the two and also told the crowd what the element of the Battle of Elements was this time around. All of the tigers knew who the two young figures were in the golden barrier, they were renowned figures.

    ¡°Now that I look closer, Akata didn¡¯t look like that before.¡±

    ¡°Wait¡­ is he missing an arm?! What happened to it?¡±

    ¡°Could he have been injured during all of our fighting?¡±

    Shouts and cries could be heard from the crowd as they looked closely at Akata. Clearly they felt guilty that Akata was caught up in their situation and after helping them, he ended up being permanently injured. It caused their excitement from before to completely wash away with grief.

    Great Lord Taple looked out across the crowd and spoke, ¡°Akata here was injured during the battle against Great Priest Bayou. He ended up, not only losing his arm, but his sight as well. He now has one arm and is completely blind.

    However, he has not let this deter him from his goal of continuing to be a cultivator! He was set back by a lot but instead of wasting away he decided to deal with it and push himself harder! He didn¡¯t do this because he had to, or even because he wanted to, he did this because he felt like it was just his path. His path was the path of cultivation so just because he lost his sight and an arm, he could still continue being a cultivator!¡±

    Great Lord Taple spoke clearly and loudly, his voice booming in the ears of all of the tigers on the island. He wanted every single member of his tribe to hear Akata¡¯s story and gain a sense of awe from it.

    Clearly, Great Lord Taple had anticipated the crowds reaction and had come up with a way to turn it into his favor. He used Akata¡¯s condition to make the crowd feel inspired to push their own cultivation harder and improve faster. This was just what Great Lord Taple wanted and it worked out well in his favor.

    All of the tigers were staring in awe at Akata standing there facing Tabet without any kind of fear on his face, in fact he even had a smile on. Clearly, Akata was enjoying this at the moment, even though he was missing and arm and was blind, he was still enjoying the fact that he could still fight. This caused all of the tigers, even Lord Tafei, to feel lost. Not lost as in not understanding Akata, but in understanding themselves. What were they doing? If even Akata could smile and push hard in cultivation in his condition, why couldn¡¯t they?

    It made a fire rise up within them. A fire that was never present before. It was a fire, a will, that burned within them that made their passion for cultivation to rise. As of this moment each and everyone of the tigers wanted to advance further in cultivation, no matter what age or level they were at. They all wanted to push themselves harder and further than they ever had before.

    Great Lord Taple looked around and nodded his head. ¡°Let the match begin!¡± His voiced boomed, even reaching the ears of Akata and Tabet who were within the barrier.

    When the two heard the voice of Great Lord Taple starting the match, both Akata and Tabet took in a deep breath and got into a fighting position. Battle intent rose to the ceiling as they looked at each other deeply. A light smile rose up on both of their faces as the aura of illusions spread out from the two. ¡°Let¡¯s start.¡± They said in unison.

    Whoosh!

    Both figures immediately sped towards each other at a tremendous speed. Tabet waved his hand causing five bright purple runes to appear. A rune appeared at each hand, each foot, and his back. Instantly the aura of illusions roiled out and his figure seemed to fade in and out.

    Akata waved a hand causing a single deep purple rune to appear but it was three meters in size. It appeared below his feet and caused the air around him to turn into a mist. Akata¡¯s figure disappeared within the mist and soon the mist turned into a deep purple as well.

    ¡®What is this? What could he be doing?¡¯ Tabet was watching everything closely and was being cautious. He wasn¡¯t taking Akata lightly at all. This was because he knew how formidable Akata was when it came to gaining insights and comprehending elements. He was treating Akata as if he were an Elder within his own tribe.

    The five runes on Tabet¡¯s body glowed with a brighter light and soon his hands turned into three-clawed hands, his feet turned into legs of a cheetah, and his back grew wings of an eagle. It was as if he had become a weird existence that shouldn¡¯t even exist, a combination of many different beasts. But, with the addition of each new body part, his battle prowess grew and his aura of illusions exploded out.

    Tabet flapped his wings and pushed off the ground hard with his cheetah feet. His speed instantly reached a new kind of height as he quickly appeared before the purple mist that Akata was in. Tabet raised his hand and his claws protruded out as he slashed toward the mist, intent on drawing Akata out of it.

    It was in that moment though that Tabet¡¯s face immediately dropped and he forced himself to stop attacking and jump back as quickly as possible. That was because in his mind he felt a fear inspiring sensation that reverberated throughout his whole body making his body palpitate.

    As soon as he jumped back he saw a sharp blade had appeared where his body just was. It was a curved blade that looked to be attached to a metal staff. Was it a weird sword? No, it was a scythe! The mist began to disperse as a figure shrouded in black robes appeared. It had on a hood that covered its face and features and it held a long scythe with one bony hand.

 Chapter 78: Master Illusionist (2)

    It didn¡¯t take long before the mist fully dispersed to reveal the complete image of the figure that was within it. It was fully three meters tall and was completely made of bones. It wore a black robe and had a hood on its head that covered its face. Its bony feet and hand could be seen and within its hand was a dark metal scythe. Although its face was covered, within the darkness where the face was, red crimson eyes were clearly visible.

    Tabet stared in shock at the figure that was in front of him. He could still sense Akata¡¯s aura within the figure and knew that it was an illusion technique probably caused by that mist earlier. But even still, it was an amazing technique that utilized illusions to strike fear into the opponent. And considering Tabet¡¯s sweat ridden face, it clearly worked.

    The crowd was also gaping at the sight of the hooded skeletal figure. To create a completely new body through the use of illusions was a popular idea but most people weren¡¯t able to do so. This was because it required tremendous insights to accomplish. You needed to be able to alter your whole persona, creating your features, changing your aura, it involved huge insights into the Inner Element of Illusions. Akata even went one step further to increase the pressure in the area, creating a false sense that he was a powerful being.

    ¡°His skill in the Inner Element of Illusions is utterly amazing. Ah. It may be a good matchup indeed.¡± One elderly figure in the crowd said.

    All of the other elder figures nodded their heads in agreement. At first they were doubtful that Akata would have the skill needed to compete with Tabet, but now they were certain that he was capable of at least holding his own for a while.

    Tabet took in a huge breath and slowly let it out. He cleared his mind as he waved his hand to produce multiple purple runes in the sky. He flew up into the air with his wings and went above the runes. He waved his hand downward toward Akata and smiled. It was a smile of enjoyment.

    When he waved his hand it caused the purple runes to begin to rotate. At first it started out slow and then began to pick up speed. Soon they were rotating at a speed that made the runes look like discs in the sky. The discs then expanded in size to cover the whole sky in a purple barrier of light. It was a domain of illusions. This was an area that would be fully controlled by Tabet as long as it lasted, and he would be able to do anything he wanted.

    ¡°Is that¡­ an Illusion Domain?! He actually can create an Illusion Domain at such a young age?!¡±

    ¡°Ahaha! He truly is worthy of being called the genius of the younger generation. Lord Tafei is an expert at illusions but it seems as if Young Lord Tabet will even surpass him.¡±

    ¡°Just how deep are his insights into the Inner Element of Illusions for him to be able to create an Illusion Domain?¡±

    The crowd spurred with joy as they saw Tabet make an Illusion Domain. This was a skill that only people who had the rank of an Elder would be able to do. Only people who had broken through to the level of Beast Rank were able to create Domains. Yet Tabet, who was at the Great Circle of the Docile Rank, was able to break that general knowledge. He was a true genius of illusions.

    Tabet smiled while he was in the air looking at the work he had just done. Although he had the insights to create an Illusion Domain, he wasn¡¯t necessarily able to do so all the time. But, he happened to be successful today. He was also happy that he was able to make it as with each time he did he would learn something new about it and thus have a better chance of making it the next time.

    Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

    ¡°Whew.¡± Tabet let out a breath and then proceeded on to attack Akata. ¡®Let¡¯s see just how powerful this domain is when attacking others.¡¯ He flapped his wings and they grew double their size. Tabet himself also grew but only by a single head. But even so, his energy bolstered and the pressure radiating off of him grew intense.

    He flapped his wings once more and needle-like feathers shot out toward Akata in a grand fashion. They were fast and was barely visible to the crowd of onlookers. A piercing cry rang out as they whistled through the air toward Akata¡¯s body.

    Akata was in his skeletal form and was mentally moved by the amount of skill Tabet had in the Inner Element of Illusions. Although Akata himself had gained tremendous insights into the element, he hadn¡¯t had any kind of time to apply that knowledge into attacks or 3

    On the field. He was basically a person who read all about swords but had never picked up one. Although this is a bit exaggerated, it was a pretty close description to what Akata¡¯s situation was like.

    Akata hefted the metal scythe into the air as he caused numerous purple runes to appear on the body of the scythe. The scythe started to grow an intense bloodthirsty aura. It seemed to have its own will to slaughter everything in its path. The scythe grew another meter and the intense aura grew as well. Akata took in a deep breath and swiped the scythe sideways toward the approaching feather blades.

    Guillotine Slice!

    The scythe moved at a blinding speed and caused an arc of purple scythe light to shoot toward the feather blades. They approached each other at a super speed.

    Bang! Bang! Boom!

    The arc of scythe light sliced away at the feather blades while the countless blades of feathers slowly disintegrated the scythe light. Soon both of the attacks were extinguished with nothing being left over to attack the other person. As the attacks ended in mutual destruction both figures looked at each other. But they had differing attitudes and faces.

    One was astonished while the other was amazed. Akata was amazed at how powerful Tabet was while Tabet was astonished that Akata could stand up to his attack. Even though they were only using the Inner Element of Illusions, there was still a difference in their cultivation bases. Tabet was in the Great Circle of the Docile Rank while Akata was at the 7th Grade of the Mortal Rank.

    Akata also had his cultivation base of the Plant Realm but he wasn¡¯t utilizing it. He was only using his Mortal Realm cultivation base as of this moment. Akata wasn¡¯t only amazed at how strong Tabet was, but how he was able to compare in strength to Tabet just now. He knew the difference between them was vast yet he was able to hold his own.

    ¡°What¡¯s going on? I shouldn¡¯t be able to evenly match him in power with my current cultivation base. Is it because of my plant cultivation base? Or is it because of you?¡± Akata asked Noluck within his dantion region.

    ¡°It¡¯s because you have two cultivation bases. It must be that the two are nourishing each other and innately strengthens your abilities. I have heard of people having two cultivation bases but I thought that it was legend until I met you. So I don¡¯t know much about this. Given a bit more time I will be able to gather more information and come to a better answer than this. For now, just accept the fact that you are able to match the strength of a being at the Great Circle of the First Rank.¡± Noluck said calmly.

    ¡®The First Rank is the Mortal Rank for mortals, the Seed Rank for plants, and the Docile Rank for beasts. That means I can match the Great Circle of all of these Ranks in strength.¡¯ Akata mused to himself thinking of how exciting this was.

    Even as the two looked at each other they launched another series of attacks. These attacks were illusionary so they wouldn¡¯t cause physical damage but mental damage. The more real the illusion became the stronger effect it had on a being''s mental state. If it was strong enough, it could completely crush a person¡¯s mind. This was why illusions were so terrifying, and if they ever reached the level of becoming real¡­ they would be utterly astonishing.

    Purple light sprang up everywhere as the two fought each other. Akata caused more mist to appear as he constantly changed his form to adapt to a situation. Sometimes changing into a skeletal figure, sometimes a giant bird, or a snake, and other times reverting back to his original appearance.

    Tabet on the other hand stayed in his form with claws, wings, and cheetah feet. The only difference was that he would slowly and continuously grow larger bit by bit. He grew from 3 meters to 4 meters to 5 meters. His wings would grow as well. All of this was possible because he had his Illusion Domain.

    Slashes were sent out, crushing blows, slicing attacks, piercing cuts, etc. All sorts of ways were used to fight with the Inner Element of Illusions. Even though they grew increasingly tired, they fought with fiercer and fiercer moves. That was because as the battle went on they would learn new things about illusions and incorporate them into their insights and improve.

    The crowd was visibly able to see how fast Akata and Tabet were improving as the battle between the two raged on. It was an astonishing display of skill and insights. In fact, some tribesmen gained new insights from watching this battle between the two.

    ¡°They are truly astonishing.¡± One Elder of the tribe said aloud. And what he said caused the other Elder to nod his head in agreement. The elders of the tribe knew that these two were geniuses of the Inner Element of Illusions and given enough time would one day become¡­ master illusionists.

 Chapter 79: Devotion, Trust, and Gratitude

    Akata and Tabet stood across from each other panting. Both of them were tired from fighting for over half an hour now. Akata was back in his original appearance with red furs. Sweat was running down his forehead and he was hunched over while gasping for air. He was giving it his all in this battle to make the most progress he could and find his limit.

    Tabet was also hunched over panting but he was clearly in a better condition than Akata. That was because his cultivation base was higher than Akata¡¯s, thus he had a large amount of stamina to keep fighting whereas Akata just had the power to contend with him.

    The crowd was already well into the battle between the two. It was an intense battle that neither of them wanted to give up on. Even though Tabet clearly had the higher cultivation base, he still had to fight with all that he had. It made him realize that he couldn¡¯t slack in cultivation either and had to work much harder than he had before.

    Akata raised his chest up into the air and started laughing. ¡°Ahahaha. I¡¯m not able to win against you just yet. For now, at least, I¡¯ll give you the victory. However, if you give me a bit of time I¡¯m sure that I can win against you.¡± Akata smiled at Tabet and said happily. He was happy he had this chance to safely gain a deeper understanding of some principles he had. And that he had the help from his friend Tabet.

    Tabet was confused at first but slowly understood why Akata was giving up. Akata didn¡¯t have the energy to contend with him. Tabet himself had a much bigger stamina pool than Akata did. The only reason he was so tired was because he had to control his Illusion Domain throughout the whole fight. It was extremely straining to him yet it helped him to further understand it.

    Tabet nodded and said, ¡°Okay then. But this won¡¯t be our only fight of course. I¡¯m not satisfied with just leaving things here. You¡¯re absolutely amazing haha.¡± Tabet grew a smile as he spoke on. He was jubilant that he got the chance to spar with such a genius as well. Someone who could, at the 7th Grade of the Mortal Rank match up to the Great Circle of the Docile Rank, was someone who was absolutely spectacular.

    Both Akata and Tabet looked at each other smiling as the golden barrier slowly began to dissolve away. Although it was faint, they could sense that the surrounding crowd had grown a bit stronger. This was because the attacks that the two had landed against the barrier helped to nourish the crowd. Mostly the younger generation was nourished as it wouldn¡¯t help the elder generation as much since they had a higher cultivation base, so they rejected it.

    Great Lord Taple looked out toward the two and nodded his head. It didn¡¯t quite go the way he wanted it to but it was acceptable. Only he knew what he had wanted the outcome to be. Perhaps he wanted Tabet to win, or wanted something to be used, either way, it didn¡¯t matter now.

    ¡°Tabet is declared the winner of this Battle of Elements.¡± Great Lord Taple said clearly. ¡°Our tribe is on the road to reaching great heights. To do this we have to become much more stronger than we are now. Even though we have become a smaller tribe, it will make it easier to help the younger generation easier as well. We can focus on individuals and increase our cultivation at a much faster rate. We will grow to become so strong that looking back, it would seem as if we had been ignorant of our ways of cultivating.

    Quality is better than quantity. We will strive to make our tribe about quality and soon will turn this island into a utopia. We will make this a new land and slowly build it up to great heights. It will rival the surrounding territories and we will have power that they have to respect. This will only happen if we put in the work to accomplish this.¡± Great Lord Taple was up in the sky looking around at the surrounding tribe that held at least ninety percent of the tribe members.This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work.

    ¡°You may be wondering why I want us to become so strong. Well I will let you know that there is an important reason for this. However, I can not say what that reason is right now. Nobody besides me knows, not even my own son. But, I ask that you put your trust in me and follow my lead. I ask that you put your faith in the Lords and allow us to bring this tribe to new and outstanding heights. If you do that, there is no doubt that we as a tribe will look down upon this world from high up.¡± Great Lord Taple¡¯s voice boomed throughout the island as he finished what he was saying.

    The crowd looked at Great Lord Taple¡¯s figure and couldn¡¯t help but be silent. They had figured that Great Lord Taple had a reason for them to get stronger but couldn¡¯t guess at what it was. However, they still held complete trust in him. He was their Great Lord after all, an exalted and powerful figure within the tribe. His age surpassed all of them, his knowledge surpassed all of them, his strength surpassed all of them. How could they not follow behind someone like this?

    It was hard to tell who did it first but after a breath of time all of the Scarlet Tigers were bowing their heads down toward Great Lord Taple. Any of the powerful tigers that were in human form transformed back into their original tiger forms. It was a grand sight to see hundreds of tigers bowing their heads toward a single being. This sight was something that even moved Great Lord Taple¡¯s heart.

    ¡°I will follow your lead!¡± Multiple voices sprang up simultaneously as they yelled out to Great Lord Taple. Soon more voices boomed out as well. And more until the whole crowd was yelling out at the same time.

    ¡°I will follow your lead!¡± The sound of it became louder and louder as it came to Great Lord Taple¡¯s ears. Not only was the sight mesmerising, the sound was soothing and awe-inspiring. It carried a hint of decisiveness and yet also a deep deep respect and devotion.

    ¡°We will follow your lead!¡± After a bit of silence it was as if the minds of all of the Scarlet Tigers synchronised and they had one voice, one body, and one mind. It was as if the tribe became a single being. If the sight could be said to be mesmerising, then the sound of their voices would be described as awe-inspiring.

    It was so beautiful of a scene that a single teardrop formed in Great Lord Taple¡¯s eye and fell down to the ground. As it fell it sparkled as the sun¡¯s rays hit it. The moment completely capitulated Great Lord Taple.

    Even more shaken than him, however, was Tabet. He was flabbergasted at the sight of over a hundred of his tribe members giving their complete trust in his grandfather. It was amazing to see even a single figure show so much devotion toward a powerful being, yet his whole tribe held utter faith in his grandfather. They didn¡¯t doubt any of his words and had happily accepted them, not as a request but as a commandment.

    Akata stood there shocked as well as he sensed the hundreds of beasts bowing their heads down. He sensed the devotion that they had for Great Lord Taple and felt the trust and faith they had in him. It was simply beautiful to feel and was imprinted within his mind. This was a moment that he would never forget. He even felt the need to help this tribe accomplish its goal, but he knew that he was too weak to make any kind of difference.

    Great Lord Taple was at a loss for words as he looked at the crowd below him. He truly didn¡¯t know what to say right now. How could he find the words to communicate to such a devoted crowd¡­ no¡­ to such a loving family such as this?

    ¡°We will rise together!¡± A voice rang out from down below. It wasn¡¯t a particularly powerful voice but it was enough for the whole crowd that was bundled together to hear the words that were just spoken.

    Everybody turned their heads toward the direction the voice came from. When they saw who had spoken the words they were surprised but then nodded their heads in agreement.

    ¡°I will be your future Lord one day but as of right now I am not strong enough to lead this tribe. That is why I need your help in becoming stronger. I will grow alongside you all and I will rise with this tribe. I ask that you all help me to reach new heights and I will do the same for each and everyone of you.¡± Tabet¡¯s voice semi boomed out to reach the ears of all the Scarlet Tigers in the vicinity.

    ¡°Hahaha that¡¯s my boy!¡± Another voice rang out in the crowd. A figure flew up into the air and waved his hand causing Tabet to fly up as well. ¡°All of us Lords are weak and will need the aid of our tribe to rise. Without you all, we wouldn¡¯t be here today. I will like to ask you all to help me to grow stronger as well.¡± Lord Tafei said sincerely to the crowd that was now below him. Tabet soon appeared at his side in the air and he also looked down at the crowd below him.

    Great Lord Taple nodded his head in satisfaction and appeared in the air beside Tabet. The three Lords stood in the air looking at the crowd of hundreds of Scarlet Tigers below them. Great Lord Taple and Lord Tafei stood on the sides while Young Lord Tabet was in the center of the two. Tabet looked at both of them and then looked downwards. Simultaneously, almost as if they had discussed it previously, the three figures bowed down to the crowd below them.

    It wasn¡¯t a bow of devotion like the crowd below them had just done, but was a bow out of mutual trust and gratitude.

 Chapter 80: Secluded Training

    Eventually the crowd called out for Young Lord Tabet, Lord Tafei, and Great Lord Taple to raise their heads from their bow. After that the area filled with determination and expectance. All of the Scarlet Tigers, including the Lords, were determined to rise to new heights, and were expecting great things in the future.

    Soon Great Lord Taple began giving orders to the tribe and giving them tasks to do to strengthen them up. There were going to be huge changes in the tribe so tasks had to be started immediately. Lord Tafei also began giving orders to the tribe members. As for Tabet, he didn¡¯t give orders but cultivated much much harder.

    In this fashion, half a month passed by quickly. Lord Tafei was tasked with leading expeditions out of the island to recruit other beasts to join them on the piece of land. Great Lord Taple worked on expanding the land of the island and making it bigger. He used his use of the Inner Elements of Fire, Earth, Sand, and Wood to create the land. He also blessed that land and the previous land with his Outer Element of Holy, that way it will be stronger and gather more energy from Heaven and Earth, making it a great place for cultivation.

    Tabet was tasked with guiding the younger generation in cultivating and understanding elements and runes. With his age and talent, he was a perfect person to help the younger generation advance at a faster rate.

    The whole tribe was put into motion as they worked together to become a much stronger force. Although it seemed chaotic, everything was extremely organized by Great Lord Taple. It made for smooth transitions for the tribe.

    Akata didn¡¯t want to get involved with the tribe so he asked Great Lord Taple for a secluded place where he could train. This was an easy matter so Great Lord Taple obviously agreed. Since then, Akata has been residing within his own cave separate from the tribe. He hadn¡¯t interacted with the rest of the tribe since then, not even Tabet. It was quite peaceful for him and he actually enjoyed training in seclusion.

    He didn¡¯t really focus on cultivating at all, if any. He focused on attuning himself to his scythe with his increased strength. He worked on his techniques and gaining insights into runes and elements. Although training in seclusion was a bit slow, it made up for it by building a stable foundation and insights. Once he went out into the world, he could unleash these insights with the foundation he set up and grow at a tremendous speed.

    ¡°Actually, these runes are quite simple. They have a mysterious origin and are able to gather and guide the energy of Heaven and Earth. Yet, these were made in a simple manner. Clearly, whoever thought of making runes was an extremely powerful figure that made these as a hobby.¡± Akata said.

    ¡°Really? That¡¯s what you think is the origin of these runes? You think that a powerful expert merely created them as a hobby, just for fun? And it just happened to be the most powerful tool in the mortal and immortal world? What brought you to this conjecture?¡± Noluck asked with a hint of ridicule and curiosity.

    ¡°Even I don¡¯t dare to imagine what kind of existence had the power of devising and creating these runes. I would at least think that they had to spend incredible resources and effort in order to make them.¡±

    ¡°I think this because of the simplicity of the runes. They have a basic function and basic use. Nothing really spectacular about them until you want to start doing more complicated things. For instance if you just want to create a rune that gathers the energy of Heaven and Earth.¡± Akata raised his hand causing a dull rune to appear in his hand. ¡°It is fairly simple to do even at my level of cultivation. But to create a rune that is able to cause the whole planet to shudder would be extremely complex and require a massive cultivation base.

    The more simple a rune is the easier it is to create and you can also have a lower cultivation base, yet the more complex, the higher a cultivation base you need to create such a rune. The simple function of runes is to gather and guide the energy of Heaven and Earth which with magic is easy to do now, so back then I ¡®m sure they had a way to do so too. And with how simple it is, I¡¯m sure someone found it as a hobby to create other things that are able to do the same, thus runes.¡± Akata gave his explanation.The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

    These were the insight he had gained regarding runes. It was deep and profound to the point that only he could truly understand what he meant by his words. It was so profound that he couldn¡¯t exactly find the words to use to explain his point. But he tried his best anyways.

    Noluck became silent as he listened to Akata¡¯s explanation about the origin of runes. As he listened on, he came to the conclusion that it wasn¡¯t such a farfetched idea as he had originally thought it out to be. Secretly he came to admire Akata¡¯s prowess in gaining insights.

    ¡®Gaining insights has to do with your mental ability. A lacking mental strength will make it so that you aren¡¯t able to retain the knowledge you gain from something or be able to endure long enough to gain that knowledge in the first place. That means not only is his cultivation base astonishing, his mental fortitude is just as formidable.¡¯Noluck mused to himself.

    ¡°Well any matter, your use of runes is still rudimentary at best. You have a long way to go when regarding runes. Although your cultivation base is lacking, you still have a lot of ways in which you can use runes yet you haven¡¯t even scratched the surface yet. All you have done really is get a basic understanding of runes. Once you start exploring and using runes you¡¯ll discover there are countless ways to incorporate runes in life.

    Given enough time I am definitely sure you will become a great Runic Cultivator. And seeing as you are also on the path of plants you will become a fine Plant Cultivator as well. I can¡¯t wait to see. Hmm. But even so you will still need to revive me and that requires a lot of strength. Since I¡¯ve dwelled in your body I¡¯ve been working on what level of strength would be needed to revive me, and I say you¡¯ll need to at least reach the Fifth Rank.

    In your cultivation path that would be the Demigod Rank I believe. Given your luck and speed it shouldn¡¯t be that hard to reach that level within a thousand years or so. But just think, once you reach that level it will completely eclipse most of the beings on this planet. Ahh I can already see myself walking around enjoying life.¡± Noluck chuckled as talked.

    Akata just sat blankly as he listened to Noluck. After all of these days in seclusion the only person he had to talk to was Noluck and so he had grown quite familiar to him. He had grown used to his talk of things he had yet to understand yet. So he didn¡¯t even question Noluck anymore. He figured that the Demigod Rank had to be a high level of power since it was required to revive Noluck after all.

    ¡°Why do you keep saying revive if you¡¯re obviously living right now? Wouldn¡¯t I just be getting you a body or something?¡± This question constantly flitted through Akata¡¯s mind and it was just now that he had asked it. Maybe he had asked before or Noluck had already mentioned it but Akata clearly had forgotten.

    ¡°I say revive because technically I am dead. In my last moments of life I used a technique to disperse my life upon the plants and nature in my vicinity therefore all of my life has been given out to nature. But what I didn¡¯t account for was beasts to be in the area. Some of my life mixed in with theirs and I happened to absorb some of their life as well. Thus I regained some of my mind and live. To put it simply I am more like a half ghost or a half spirit so I need to be fully revived to actually live.¡± Noluck said.

    ¡°So that¡¯s how it is then. Okay I see now. Well if it is like that then how come you haven¡¯t possessed a living being to absorb all of their life and live. That way you can have a body and life?¡±

    ¡°Because all of the beings here are too low level and their life force is too low for me to live off of. If I was to possess one of you, I would only live for about a few years and then die off completely. Also if I tried to possess someone with enough life force for me to live, they would have to have been at least at my previous level or higher, but if they were then they would obviously have the strength to cast aside the possession and kill me off immediately. Therefore this is the most safest route.¡± Noluck said indifferently.

    ¡°I see then¡­¡± Akata was slightly astonished. He had no idea that the world could work like this. His horizons had truly been broadened since meeting with Noluck. ¡°Well I might as well get back to training then.¡±

    Akata stood up and lifted his scythe with his only hand. A scythe worked better as a two handed weapon but Akata only had one so he had to deal with it. He had to become accustomed to using it with one hand now and therefore he spent much more time with the scythe then he had before.

    He raised it high in the air and caused a purple rune to appear in the air in front of him. The purple rune glittered brightly and it slowly transformed into a ball. The ball was normal and didn¡¯t have any spectacular traits to it. It was yellow with a red stripe and no aura protruded from it.

    Akata waved his scythe into the air and then swept it down toward the ball in front of him. The scythe moved with a fast speed and was soon on top of the ball.

    Swish!

    The ball simply bounced away toward the ground and then back up into the air again where it stayed.

    Akata looked at it and then shook his head. ¡°Again.¡± He said to himself.

 Chapter 81: Soul Rune

    Raising his scythe into the air once more, Akata sliced it downwards toward the ball again. But the result was the same as last time.

    Boing.

    The yellow ball bounced off of the ground and back into the air where it stayed. Akata looked at it with frustration and thought, ¡°What the french toast! All I need to do is get it to pass straight through the ball without touching it! Can it really be that hard.¡±

    Akata had been at this training for weeks. He had wanted to incorporate elements into his fighting to make himself more diverse and unpredictable but it had proven to be quite difficult to do this. The first element Akata thought to use was the Inner Element of Illusions. He was going to have his scythe become illusory at times when he swung it to catch his opponent off guard.

    The easy part was getting his scythe to become illusory, the hard part was being able to activate and deactivate it within a minute amount of time. He wanted this to be almost instantaneous, yet he couldn¡¯t manage to do it.

    He swung repeatedly at the ball attempting to have the scythe pass through but it never worked and instead the ball just kept on bouncing up and down. As time passed, Akata grew increasingly worked up until finally he stopped completely and sat down in meditation to calm his mind.

    ¡°Ugh! Stupid skill not working right. It¡¯s like it won¡¯t ever work no matter how many times I try or how many different ways I go about doing it. No, I must do this! I won¡¯t lose to a simple technique that I thought about creating and using. Humph, we¡¯ll see who wins in the end. Give me until the time that I have to leave and I¡¯ll have this skill down.¡± Akata said with his words full of decisiveness.

    ¡°Big words coming from someone who can¡¯t even make a weapon illusory for a bit of time and then make it corporeal again. Hehe. It should be a piece of cake really.¡± Noluck said while laughing quietly.

    Akata paid him no attention as he got back up and raised the scythe in the air again. He waved it down toward the ball and when it was about to strike¡­ Bang! It bounced off the wall and then made its way back into the air again. The same place as before.

    ¡°Again.¡± Akata said to himself. He practiced and practiced until eventually at any given moment he would be swinging that same strike at the ball. It was in this fashion that days went by fast for him. He barely had time to even eat.

    In truth, Akata didn¡¯t have to eat much of anything at all. Most cultivators at his same level would still have to eat a bit of food to sustain themselves because they weren¡¯t able to draw on much energy from Heaven and Earth. However, Akata could bypass this because he had two cultivation bases absorbing energy.

    Also, his plant cultivation base made it so that he could absorb the energy of the sun much easier than before to replenish his energy. He also received more nutrients from water and plants than he had before. All this made it so that he didn¡¯t have to rely that much on food for survival.

    Another two weeks went by and soon there was only a month left of Akata¡¯s punishment. He raised his scythe in the air and waved it down to the ball in front of him. The ball was green in color with yellow polka dots covering it. When the scythe reached it, a purple glow emitted from it.

    The scythe then seemed to pass through the ball as if it were a hot knife through butter. It was like the ball wasn¡¯t even there and Akata was still swinging the scythe through the air.

    Bang!

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    The ball burst apart as the scythe became corporeal from within it. Akata shook his head in disappointment. ¡°Too early. I need to be a bit more patient.¡± He waved his hand causing a purple rune to form in the air ahead of him. The rune expanded and became round as a ball was formed, this time orange with five red stars lined up.

    Swish! The scythe cut toward the ball and completely passed through it, but Akata was too slow in releasing the intangible illusion and the scythe passed through the ground where it became stuck. ¡°Too late.¡± Akata sighed out loud as he shook his head once more. ¡°Again.¡±

    ¡°Too early.¡±

    ¡°A bit slow on that one.¡±

    Bang!

    ¡°I¡¯m almost there, just a bit more practice and I¡¯ll have it!¡± Eagerness could be heard within Akata¡¯s voice as he spoke to himself. It had been three more days and he stood with the scythe in his hand. Sweat was covering his body and he seemed tired, but his eagerness showed otherwise.

    All of a sudden. Whoosh! Swish! The scythe passed straight through the ball and then sliced through the ground as it became tangible again. ¡°Ah!¡± Akata was surprised as he tried it again. Whoosh. Swish. The same thing occurred.

    ¡°I¡­ I did it! I finally did it!¡± He screamed out. It had taken him a bit more than three weeks to accomplish his goal of turning his scythe illusory and then back to being tangible when he needed it almost instantaneously. But due to his continuous practice he had finally succeeded.

    Akata took in a deep breath and then his dull crimson eyes gleamed with determination. He waved his hand causing four more purple runes to appear in different locations in the cave. They all expanded to become balls, some red others pink, and some having stripes and others dots. Akata waved a finger and all of the balls shot toward him.

    Akata raised his scythe in the air and then dashed straight for the incoming balls. The first ball he passed by his scythe went straight through as if he never had a scythe to begin with. The next ball however was hit into another ball and bounced off of it causing both to hit the ground and wall respectively. Akata quickly changed his scythe to make it illusory again and had it pass through another ball as it then turned tangible to hit the ball that was behind that one.

    Switching between illusory and tangible, Akata practiced his combat skills with his illusory technique. Sometimes his scythe would completely pass through the balls and other times it would bang against it with a huge force. The balls were made sturdy so they didn¡¯t suffer any damage.

    Only when Akata was extremely tired did he fall over and collapse to the ground gasping for air. His red furs were all sticky from his sweat and stuck to his skin. And his hair was disheveled. From this, it was easy to see that Akata had put in a lot of work.

    ¡°You know, if you train your body more, you won¡¯t get into this sorry state so fast. Body cultivators are one of the most powerful beings. Heh. I remember this one body cultivator who was extremely terrifying. He actually punched so hard it created different spacetimes.¡± Noluck said, seemingly reminiscing about the past.

    Akata was still gasping for air barely conscious but he could still hear clearly. His eyes went wide with astonishment as he heard this. A body cultivator could be that strong? It seemed impossible to him. But that was only because this was beyond his own comprehension. He thought to himself, ¡®Maybe I¡¯ll take up body cultivation again. I¡¯ve really been slacking on it. I wouldn¡¯t mind having a powerful body again.¡¯

    After making that thought Akata closed his eyes and went to sleep. It seemed like a deep sleep, almost like a coma. Akata found himself in a meadow full of yellow grass and a black sky. Surprisingly, he found out that he could see with his own eyes. But, what astonished him about the scenery was not the yellow grass or the black sky but the sun. It was a giant red sun in the sky yet, it didn¡¯t actually seem to be a sun. It was like its true purpose wasn¡¯t to illuminate the world below it.

    Akata took a closer look at the sun and found that it was a bit off. The red sun seemed to be drawing in some type of energy from all across the planet he was standing on. No, it seemed to be drawing in energy from everywhere not just the planet. But the energy was sort of different, it wasn¡¯t the energy of Heaven and Earth but it still felt like he knew this kind of energy.

    Akata walked closer to the sun observing it the whole way. It wasn¡¯t really bright at all so it was fairly easy for him to look directly at it without straining his eyes. As he observed it he found something strange, after looking deeper his eyes went wide and he gasped. ¡°Is that¡­ a rune?¡± He couldn¡¯t believe what he was seeing within the sun. No, it wasn¡¯t even a sun, it was a giant rune the size of a sun.

    As Akata got closer he felt a tugging within him. It was like a suctioning force was enveloping him. Trying to draw out¡­ his soul! He looked back up at the giant red rune and could feel the suctioning force become stronger. ¡°The energy it¡¯s drawing in is not the of Heaven and Earth, but of souls. It¡¯s drawing in souls as its energy? Just what kind of rune is this.¡± Akata stood still for a moment and then his eyes went wide with disbelief. ¡°Could this be a¡­ soul rune? This rune should be able to gather and guide the Outer Element of Souls. Wha¡­ Whaat!¡±

    Akata became excited and immediately sat down to study the giant rune in the sky. He wanted to understand how it was made, what did it do, when it could be used, where was it most applicable. All of these questions developed in his head as he was trying to gain enlightenment and insights regarding this soul rune.

    As he was sitting there studying the soul rune. His body that was still asleep started to glow with a crimson light. The red rune inside of his soul region started to glow brightly and spin at a fast speed. The glow lit up Akata¡¯s body and seemed to change him. The changes weren¡¯t external but internal. His dantion region, his soul region, everything that was used in cultivation experienced this change. As for the change itself, only Akata would know what it was after he woke up.

 Chapter 82: The Soul Is Eternal

    Akata was sitting within the middle of a yellow field of grass looking up at a giant red rune in the black sky. The rune looked as if it could be a giant sun if you didn¡¯t pay much attention to it. But Akata did and found that it was a giant rune that gathered and guided the energy of souls. What surprised him even more was that this soul energy actually felt a bit stronger than the energy of Heaven and Earth.

    He wanted to study and gain enlightenment of the Outer Element of Souls so that he would be able to wield it in combat. This was an Outer Element after all, and even though he didn¡¯t know much about, he knew that they held absolute power over other elements. They were elements that were blessed with the energy of Heaven.

    ¡®Inner Elements can guide the energy of Earth and Outer Elements can guide the energy of Heaven. This is the main difference between the two that sets them worlds apart in strength. Yet, the Outer Element of Souls actually feels as if it is stronger than the energy of Heaven. How is this possible if it uses the energy of Heaven to strengthen itself?

    Could it be that it has a way to use the energy of Heaven to its fullest potential and strengthen it, or maybe it uses a different kind of energy, or probably something totally different. The Outer Element of Chaos is supposed to be its equal, does that mean that the chaos element is also stronger than the energy of Heaven?¡¯

    These thoughts flashed through Akata¡¯s mind but he was at too low of a level to truly begin to understand what any of this meant. Only until he experienced more of the universe would he begin to unravel the mysteries of it.

    Continuing to sit there, Akata focused on the ways the soul element moved, what patterns it displayed, how dense it was, the path it used to guide the energy of Heaven. He closely observed every little thing about that giant red rune in the sky. Since it was so big it made it easier to see its mysteries within it. Even if it was easier though, Akata still had trouble gaining enlightenment of it.

    Time passed by. Days went by, weeks, months, even years. Yet Akata was still sitting in that same place observing that same red rune. Akata had observed it for so long that he actually found the rune to be a specific kind of red, crimson, the color of blood. That crimson rune hung in the air constantly absorbing souls.

    ¡®This rune is always absorbing souls, but it never gets any bigger. Is it also destroying souls? Or is it changing the souls into something else? Also, it has lasted for a long time yet it is still here and shows no signs of breaking apart. Usually, runes would dissipate after a certain amount of time but this one doesn¡¯t seem to do that, almost as if it is eternal.

    Then the next question is, what is keeping it from being destroyed? Is the the energy of Heaven? Can all Outer Elements do this? Or is it the soul element itself? Then does that mean the chaos element can also do this? Agh. I¡¯ll only know once I observe more and learn its secrets.¡¯

    Akata continued to look in depth at the crimson rune in the sky. More years passed by. Akata began to grow old. His former long black spiky hair was now a washed white with some gray. His dull crimson eyes were still the same as ever. His skin was now wrinkled and his clothes had long since been torn due to wear and age. He looked like an old mortal person.

    But even still he continued to look up at the crimson rune in the black sky. It seemed as if he wasn¡¯t even aware of the passage of time. As if only a few minutes had gone by. After more years went by, Akata suddenly found himself struggling to breathe, as if it had become a challenge just to inhale and exhale. This was due to extreme old age.

    ¡®When did I get this old?!¡¯ Akata was astounded to see himself, after countless years Akata finally looked away from the crimson rune to observe himself and what he found shocked him. He was an extremely old man, all of his muscle was gone and he looked like a decrepit skeleton. His cultivation base was about fully withered along with his body. But Akata became even more shocked when he looked in his soul region.Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on.

    ¡®My soul isn¡¯t affected at all. It still looks the same as it did before. It¡¯s as strong as ever, in fact it may have even gotten stronger since the last time I¡¯ve looked at it.¡¯ Akata was amazed by this discovery. Even when his body and cultivation base were withered to extreme degrees, his soul was still well as if time couldn¡¯t harm it.

    ¡®So that means that the soul truly is eternal. It can¡¯t be affected by time at all. As long as nothing physically destroys it, it will forever be there.¡¯ Akata¡¯s eyes gleamed as he came to this realization.

    Suddenly, the whole place started to tremble. The ground, the air, the sky, everything trembled with increasing ferocity. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± Akata couldn¡¯t help but say aloud. This hadn¡¯t happened before in all the years that he had been here.

    The crimson rune started to emit a droning sound and then rotate very very slowly. It was so slow that Akata didn¡¯t even notice that it was turning. The crimson rune lit up to become as bright as a real sun. Akata had to shield his eyes from it and look away.

    If he could see though he would notice the crimson rune trembling as a strand of crimson light flew off of it and was absorbed into Akata¡¯s body. Akata suddenly jolted and his badly withered body began to look younger. But what was surprising was that it didn¡¯t revert back to its old state but seemed to progress through life faster until he was¡­ reborn anew!

    Akata had died just now and was reborn in order for him to get back to his former age of 13 years. However, it happened so fast that he didn¡¯t even notice it just then. What he did notice was that his soul was now much more stronger than before, stronger by at least two times! This was a soul comparable to a Second Rank cultivator. Although he didn¡¯t know why he needed a strong soul, Akata happily accepted it.

    But before he could fully inspect his body for more changes he heard a strange voice. It seemed as if the voice was from distant ancient times, yet it also felt as if it came from modern times as well.

    ¡°Master the Outer Element of Souls, master the energy of Souls, and uncover the true mysteries and potential of soul energy. That¡¯s the first step to reaching the pinnacle!¡± The voice was calm and reserved until it reached the last sentence. When it spoke about reaching the pinnacle it seemed to resonate with Akata¡¯s entire being.

    Reach the pinnacle of what? He didn¡¯t know that answer but based on the intent behind those words he could guess at what that pinnacle was. That pinnacle of everything! What greater pinnacle could there be? Would there be doubt of the strongest person if they were the best and strongest at everything? No! So that voice intended for Akata to reach the pinnacle of everything he could, simple.

    The voice didn¡¯t seem like a legacy or a will. No, it seemed like a goal for Akata to achieve. Something to set his mind to in his life. He didn¡¯t want glory, he didn¡¯t really have anybody to protect either. In fact, he still didn¡¯t know why he wanted to be strong and reach the pinnacle. But if he did, he would be able to say that he had achieved his goal. And that was a start for him, even if it was pretty basic.

    Once the voice was finished speaking Akata found himself fading away. He had no way to stop himself from fading either. ¡°What? Noo! I still have much more to learn.¡± Akata just couldn¡¯t accept it, he didn¡¯t want to accept it.

    The voice rang out once again. ¡°When you have truly stepped on the path to cultivation then you can come back here for two lives!¡± After that, Akata was completely taken away.

    He suddenly opened his eyes to find himself inside of a very dark place. It was pitch black and he couldn¡¯t see anything at all. He looked around and saw that nothing had changed¡­ he was still blind. He cast his nature sense out and found that his surroundings were still the same and nothing had moved anywhere.

    He inspected his body and found that his soul had surprisingly become much more stronger than before. ¡°So all of those things really did happen then.¡± Akata couldn¡¯t help but say. He was astounded because even though he had spent many years in the yellow field it felt like a dream to him now. But he could remember every detail of what he had experienced there.

    ¡°What happened to you?!¡± A worrisome voice resounded throughout Akata¡¯s body, originating from his dantion region. It was Noluck who had just yelled out in a somewhat frightened manner.

    ¡°What do you mean?¡± Akata could sense the worry within Nolucks voice. He could even sense the hidden fear that dwelled in his voice. ¡®It seems like I can sense the emotions of people. Is it because of my stronger soul?¡¯ Akata was semi surprised. The only reason he wasn¡¯t fully surprised was because he was still focused on Noluck.

    ¡°What do I mean?! You died just a moment ago! That¡¯s what I mean! And it happened so suddenly and unexpectedly that I may have missed it if I wasn¡¯t paying attention. But not only that you were brought right back to life as if nothing had happened to you. I couldn¡¯t even inspect what had happened because some red light that covered you as soon as you had gone to sleep ended up keeping me confined here. And now I find that I can¡¯t go anywhere at all right now.¡± Noluck said quite flustered.

    Akata¡¯s mouth gaped opened and all he could say was, ¡°Huh?¡±

 Chapter 83: Akata Emerges

    Akata said in a voice filled with disbelief, ¡°You¡¯re telling me that I died and was brought back to life?¡± He just couldn¡¯t believe it at all.

    ¡°That¡¯s what I said didn¡¯t I? It happened so fast that I could barely notice it. It was weird. Not to mention that red light that is keeping me trapped in your dantion region. Humph. You really are a weird case with many mysteries, just who are you?¡± Noluck was astonished yet also was cautious. But, even if he was more cautious than he was now, he wouldn¡¯t be able to do anything since he was trapped within Akata¡¯s dantion region.

    Akata was silent for a moment before he said, ¡°Can you tell me all that happened to me?¡±

    ¡°All that happened to you? Can you even do that? Just what went on when you were asleep for a whole four days?! Were you even asleep at all? Humph. But I¡¯ll tell you what I know.¡± Noluck was very curious about the matter as it involved him. That red light made him so scared because it even had the power to kill him, yet it decided to just trap him instead.

    ¡°When you first went to sleep a bizarre red light suddenly started to emit and glow from your body. It all sprang up at the same time so I couldn¡¯t tell where it came from. I was going to go try and inspect your body but then that red light came flashing by in my direction and stopped me in my tracks. I wasn¡¯t able to move anywhere and eventually that red light pushed me back into your dantion region and put a seal on me that made it impossible for me to leave.

    After that days passed by with no change just that red light still covering your body. I paid as much attention to it as I could but nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Then today in the slightest bit of time, you died and were brought back to life in a flash. Like I said, it happened so fast even I was barely able to notice it. Then a few moments after that you woke up. But before you did that red light vanished without a trace. But I am still unable to move anywhere from this place.

    Now that I say it aloud, it sounds as if I¡¯m going crazy. No matter what special abilities a First Rank cultivator has, it shouldn¡¯t be powerful enough to influence me in anyway, but you¡¯re able to effortlessly keep me sealed up in this place.¡± Fear still lingered in his voice but it was undetectable by Akata.

    ¡®I¡¯m not even going to mention how it wiped away the magic I was going to use to possess you when you got older. I can¡¯t even summon it anymore, hell, I can¡¯t summon any kind of possessing magic or any magic that can harm you. It¡¯s like that red light completely stopped me from doing anything to harm you. But, it hasn¡¯t stopped me from helping you.¡¯ Noluck was most afraid of the red light completely controlling his actions in the future. If it was able to seal him up and stop him from causing harm what else was it capable of? This type of control was unheard of when it involved a being as powerful as him, unless the being who cast it was of an even higher level than himself.

    ¡®I can¡¯t do anything to harm this brat, but that red light let¡¯s me help him. So needless to say, it will only permit me to help him grow and not do anything to hurt him. I¡¯m scared to say that If I only had ill feelings for him I might not even be here right now.¡¯ This thought truly brought fear to Noluck¡¯s mind. ¡®I really do have terrible luck, don¡¯t I, Sunwater?¡¯

    Akata sat there thinking about what Noluck had told him. The thing that most caught his attention wasn¡¯t the part about him suddenly dying and being brought back to life, but the mysterious red light. ¡®Could it be that that red light came from the soul rune? Noluck is supposed to be extremely powerful but it was able to seal him here. Just how powerful is that soul rune?

    And also before I left that voice said that I will be given two lives next time I go there. Does that mean I was given one life before? If so, then I could have died there, but when? Maybe when I was really old.¡¯ Akata went into deep thought.This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

    Soon, however, he cast it aside. ¡®I¡¯ll only know once I step onto the path of cultivation¡­ But aren¡¯t I already on that path? Aw man! What is the path to cultivation if I¡¯m not already on it?¡¯ Akata shook his head and then stood up.

    ¡°I¡¯ve been cooped up in this cave for a while now. I should go and see how things are coming along outside. I should have a little less than a month left here.¡± Akata said while strolling toward the cave exit.

    ¡°Wait! Are you not going to tell me what you experienced when you went to sleep? It had to be somehting right?¡± Noluck sounded anxious to know the answer. If he could get the answer then maybe he had a way to break free from that seal that was placed on him.

    ¡°Oh yeah. When I went to sleep all I saw was a red light surrounding my body. I tried to inspect it but I couldn¡¯t. Then a voice came and and said step onto the path of cultivation and I¡¯ll return and before I knew it I woke up.¡± Akata said lightly. He wasn¡¯t going to tell Noluck exactly what he had experienced because with his increased soul sensitivity, he felt as if Noluck was hiding something himself.

    ¡°Humph. Not going to tell me eh? Fine, I¡¯ll figure it out on my own then.¡± Noluck became silent after that and didn¡¯t speak at all. Of course at his level, his soul sensitivity was strong too and he could cearly tell that Akata was hiding something as well.

    Akata paid him no more attenion and let him be. If he could figure out what happened then he would¡¯ve been done so. Akata continued to walk to the exit and waved his hand where his scythe was and blasted a hole in the rock in front of him. Soon sunlight poured in through the hole and shone on Akata¡¯s face. He took in a deep breath of the fresh air and stepped through the hole.

    As soon as he stepped out, Akata cast his nature sense out further and inspected the whole scene in front of him. He was welcomed with nature and a fresh sea breeze. But what astounded him was the sight of a beast. The beast walked on four legs and had the body of a bear, blue fur, and white claws. It¡¯s tail was extremely thin and slithered around like a snake. It was a Lunar Bear right in front of him.

    The Lunar Bear looked young and when it saw Akata it let out a wail, calling for its mother. Soon a cry resounded close by and a much larger Lunar Bear came rushing over toward Akata. This Lunar Bear roared and caused a blue light to cover its claw. The gravity on its claw increased as it swiped toward Akata. The addition of extra gravity on the claw made its strike much more ferocious.

    Akata stood there sensing as the Lunar Bear approached him with full speed. Once in range it swept its claw out toward his throat in an attempt to kill him. Akata remembered his time in a forest with Peizhi Xiuying fighting Lunar Bears and he couldn¡¯t help but chuckle. Back then it had been an easy matter to kill them, now that he had grown stonger how could they possibly pose a threat now?

    Before, Akata had retracted all of his cultivation base but now, he let it loose. A bit of his 7th Grade Mortal Rank cultivation base flooded out and crashed into the rushing Lunar Bear causing it to stumble. The Lunar Bear was only at the 3rd Grade of the Docile Rank so it didn¡¯t cause Akata to become flustered at all.

    It was too close however, and even as it stumbled it let out a loud roar calling for more beasts, its claw still came closer to Akata. Fear was seen all over its face as it came into contact with Akata¡¯s cultivation base power. If it had known his cultivation base beforehand it would have just rushed to its cub, picking it up, and ran off. Not daring to even look Akata in the eye. But alas, Akata held it back, now its claw was heading straight towards this deadly opponent. It was scared that Akata would see this as an attempt to harm him and that Akata would retaliate.

    Akata on the other hand just watched as the claw drew closer to him. He raised his scythe up in a smooth manner in the path of the claw. Whoosh! The claw touched the handle of the scythe and stopped in place, no longer moving. Akata didn¡¯t even move his hand back as the claw collided with his scythe. To him, it felt as if wind had just hit his scythe.

    Before Akata had time to pull his scythe back multiple roars landed in his ears. Most of these roars and cries were different from each other. Some were deep and brooding while others sounded more like screeches than actual roars. There had to be at least tens of different roars coming into Akata¡¯s ears at the moment.

    Akata¡¯s eye twitched at the sound of the roars and cries and then his nature sense picked up on the bodies of multiple beasts closing in on him. A few he recognised but most he had never seen or heard about before. There were some that looked like giant eagles with the head of a lizard. Some had the body of a horse with the legs and head of cheetahs. Some came with swirling auras of power and some were somewhat weak.

    ¡°These beasts are so different from each other. Their strength ranges from the 3rd Grade and up, some are even higher than my own. Luckily none of them have reached the Great Circle or are in the Beast Rank otherwise I would have to attempt to run away.¡±

    A light cheerful smile spread across Akata¡¯s face as he sensed all of the approaching beasts. He raised his scythe in the air and then let out a hearty laugh. ¡°Let¡¯s fight!¡± Then he charged forth.

 Chapter 84: 10th Grade Beasts

    Akata raised the scythe that was in his hand and took in a long calm breath. He spread his nature sense out thirty meters to surround him in every direction. His heart calmed down and he became as still as a mountain. His nature sense was calm and if the beast¡¯s weren¡¯t there to see him, they would¡¯ve never even thought he was there.

    The tens of beasts charged toward Akata from all sides, bent on attacking him. When the first beast reached ten meters, Akata¡¯s nature sense turned rough and forceful as he rushed in that beast¡¯s direction. The beast was surprised but didn¡¯t back off. It was in the 6th Grade of the Docile Rank and could possibly hold it¡¯s own long enough for support.

    Akata raised his scythe into the air and slashed it toward the beast in front of him. It was a bat like beast that was over three meters long. When the scythe reached it, it completely passed through it as if nothing came into contact with it. Akata completely bypassed that bat and went to the beast behind it which was at the 8th Grade.

    Jumping into the air, Akata pointed his scythe toward the 8th Grade beast and an orange rune appeared at the end of it. The orange rune then grew to become a fireball and flew toward the beast.

    Boom!

    The ground was blasted apart in front of the beast forcing it to stop and preventing it from going forward at the moment. Akata, while still airborne, waved his scythe through the air causing a line of orange runes to appear. Each one became a fireball and shot out to a beast and blasted the ground in front of them stopping them in their tracks. This caused their charge to be stopped completely and changed the tide of the battle.

    Taking advantage of their sudden stop and confusion, Akata¡¯s body became dark and then turned into a shadow. The shadow first started at his feet and then came to his waist, before gradually making its way to his head. His whole body was now a shadow. This was his Shadowfeet movement skill. His speed instantly shot up and he dashed forward to the beast at the 8th Grade.

    This beast had the body of a horse and the head and legs of a cheetah. It was actually pretty fast and a blazing heat radiated off of it. It was the first beast to be stopped by the fireball cast by Akata, and also the first beast to get past it. Now it charged toward Akata once again. It let out a roar and then spewed out a shower of flames out of its mouth toward Akata.

    ¡°Fire eh? I can counter that.¡± Akata smiled and then caused a fairly big blue rune to appear in front of his body. The rune then expanded some more and then turned into a wave of water. The flamethrower crashed into the wave of water and was completely extinguished. The wave, however, continued to move forward to the horse-cheetah beast. The wave washed over the beast and sent it tumbling back along with any beasts that were behind it.

    Akata didn¡¯t stop there as behind him, a large ape-like beast with skin made of alligator barreled to him with a fist. Akata didn¡¯t dodge as he let the fist pass through his shadow form. Akata dispersed and then coalesced right behind him in an instant. Akata planted his scythe into the ground, and spun around it to kick the ape-like beast. However, the beast only stumbled back slightly and grabbed his foot and threw Akata away.

    ¡°Ahh!¡± Akata surprisingly screamed. Akata landed against a tree and it cracked and fell apart. ¡°My body really is lacking. I can¡¯t even send a beast at the 8th Grade flying back.¡± Akata shook his head and got up instantly. He waved his scythe in the air as orange and blue runes appeared. Fire and water were made and then crashed into each other causing a mist to form where Akata was. The mist completely covered over the land and Akata¡¯s figure was hidden within.

    All of the beasts were awe-struck and stopped in their tracks trying to pick up any traces of Akata. Akata was actually a terrifying foe for them. Although his cultivation base couldn¡¯t be seen as spectacular, his other traits could be. His speed was definitely terrifying, not just his movement speed, but his casting and judgement speed as well.Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

    Knowing what to do in a fight was very important, and if you could pull it off in an instant and set up for your next move before your opponent could react, that would make any foe wary. Not only that, but this human seemed to be taking this lightly. And they could tell that he wasn¡¯t trying to hurt any of them, otherwise his attacks would have been sent to their bodies and not their surroundings.

    But, even if the beasts new this they didn¡¯t want to back down. That was because one of their own had called for help. Not to mention that this human was in their own territory.

    ¡°Everyone watch out for his attacks. If he comes by you immediately roar out.¡± A deep voice called out. This was an ape-like alligator skinned beast. His cultivation base was at the 10th Grade and he could be considered an expert within this group.

    ¡°His speed is very fast so I¡¯ll be the first to reach him as soon as he shows up.¡± A lady-like calm soothing voice sprang up right after the ape-like beast spoke up. The one to speak was a five meter long snake with wings of a bat. It was white in color and had faint blue spots on its skin. This beast was also at the 10th Grade.

    ¡°Humph. Just leave this brat to me. I¡¯ll tear him limb from limb in an instant.¡± A savage voice called out. This came from a black colored wolf that had small different colored dots on its fur. These small dots made it look as if the galaxy were on its fur. It¡¯s body was over three meters long and it had saber teeth protruding from its mouth.

    Upon hearing the words of the black wolf both the ape and snake frowned. ¡°Don¡¯t get full of yourself Alabast.¡± The snake beast replied. ¡°He¡¯s a very strange opponent. And it seems as if he¡¯s been here for a while so I find it weird that the Scarlet Rune Tribe didn¡¯t say anything about him.¡±

    ¡°That is something that I¡¯ve also been thinking about since I laid eyes on him. Why wouldn¡¯t the Scarlet Tiger¡¯s mention him at all?¡± The spe-like beast said.

    Alabast simply snorted. ¡°Who cares. I just want to fight him that¡¯s all. Pina and Gorgon, simply leave him to me.¡± Alabast replied.

    Pina, the snake-like beast, and Gorgon, the ape-like beast simply watched as Alabast ran amok looking for Akata. Pina said coldly, ¡°Those Star Wolves¡­ no, the Meteor Wolf Star Tribe is simply insane.¡± She snickered. She then continued to look for Akata as well.

    Gorgon just shook his head and started his own search. They all casually gave orders to the various beasts around them as they looked for Akata.

    Akata, on the other hand, walked around casually looking at the various beasts searching for him. He was using his Demonic Wraith technique to make himself invisible from the various beasts. Of course, that alone wouldn¡¯t keep them from finding him, so he used his nature energy to perfectly blend in with his surroundings. Even still he wasn¡¯t satisfied and used the Inner Element of Illusions to hide his aura. Now it was like he didn¡¯t even exist anymore. No matter how hard the beasts looked they would never find him.

    Akata watched for a while until the mist disappeared and the beasts found out that Akata had disappeared. They continued their search and split to search more ground. After a while they stopped and returned to their various locations.

    Seeing, that the beasts gave up, Akata appeared once again. Although using the Demonic Wraith skill for invisibility didn¡¯t consume a lot of energy, nor did the use of the Inner Element of Illusions, using it for an extended period of time resulted in Akata becoming tired and drained. However, he didn¡¯t stop to rest as he made his way to the cave of the Scarlet Tigers. He made use of his nature energy to make his energy merge with nature and completely hide himself. Gradually he came closer and closer to the cave.

    On the way he saw many different beasts. Eavesdropping on some of their conversations, the one¡¯s he could understand anyways, Akata found out a lot of information. Basically, the Scarlet Tigers had been gathering some of the lone tribes in the area who were in a similar position as them, cast away from the mainland. They brought back different beasts and started their own community of beasts. All of these beasts helped each other and are beginning to slowly build back strength.

    Some of the tribes that were brought back were weak, while others were quite strong. However, even the strongest of the tribes didn¡¯t compare in strength to the now divided Scarlet Tigers. The now Scarlet Rune Tribe held the greatest amount of influence and power thanks to Great Lord Taple.

    Great Lord Taple was at the 3rd Grade of the Temporal Rank after all. This was why the Scarlet Rune Tribe had absolute sway over the beasts here. And nobody would question that. This was what made beasts different from mortals, the fact that they truly respected and followed the strong. Even if that being was only slightly more powerful, they would wholeheartedly follow them without question.

    Soon, Akata made his way to the center of the island where the Scarlet Tigers resided. It looked much more different now as, instead of living underground, the Scarlet Tigers now lived above it. The forest had more clearings now and groups of beasts could be seen in these clearings. Houses made of stone and earth were plentiful and even places for sparring were made. It looked completely different than before.

    Akata noticed this but didn¡¯t pay it too much attention. His mind was focused on the true center of the island. Where a huge palace could be seen. This was where the leaders stayed and surely where he could find Tabet.

 Chapter 85: Great Aka Tribe

    Akata quickly and silently came to the palace that was in the center of the island. It wasn¡¯t a true palace like one¡¯s that mortals built, but more like a large dome shaped building. At the entrance of the palace there were two guards, one from the Scarlet Tiger race and the other was an ape-like beast like the one he saw previously. Akata walked up to the guards.

    ¡°A mortal?¡± The ape-like beast said disbelievingly. He stepped forward and called out. ¡°Ahahaha! I didn¡¯t expect to see a mortal walking around here. And to think you would approach this spot of all places. Well I haven¡¯t ever eaten a mortal before but I heard they were pretty tasty.¡± The beast licked its lips and then reached out a hand toward Akata.

    The Scarlet Tiger wasn¡¯t paying any attention until he heard the beast beside him speak about a mortal. ¡®A mortal? The only one I know about is¡­¡¯ At this thought, the Scarlet Tiger¡¯s face immediately filled with fear and anger. ¡°What do you think you¡¯re doing?! Get away from him this instant!¡± His voice echoed out, drawing attention to the entrance of the palace.

    The Scarlet Tiger instantly charged to try and stand in the way of the beast and Akata but he had been too slow to react. The beast had already reached out toward Akata. Akata tried to evade but how could he? This beast was in the Beast Rank after all. He was grabbed a hold of and started to be squeezed as he was dragged back.

    It was then that the ape-like beast heard the Scarlet Tiger¡¯s words and came to a stop. ¡°What do you mean what am I doing? I¡¯m about to kill this mortal for coming into our territory. Is that a problem?¡± He said rather irritated.

    ¡°Is that a problem? Of course it¡¯s a problem!¡± The Scarlet Tiger yelled out. By now a crowd was beginning to form around the entrance of the palace. When they saw the scene all of them were surprised but some for different reasons.

    ¡°Let go of our savior!¡±

    ¡°What is a mortal doing here?¡±

    ¡°Kill him! What are y¡¯all waiting for?¡±

    ¡°Release him this instant!¡±

    Cries and yells rang out. Clearly the crowd was divided. The Scarlet Tigers on one side and the rest of the beasts on the other. Some people, however, could see this division and thought it was really strange.

    The only reason the ape-like beast didn¡¯t disregard the Scarlet Tiger and immediately kill Akata was because the Scarlet Tiger¡¯s were the rulers of this island. Their word held much more sway than any other beast here. When he looked out into the crowd and heard the various Scarlet Tigers cursing him, he immediately got a bad feeling.

    In fact the other beasts that were yelling for him to kill the mortal slowly lowered their voices as they realised the Scarlet Tiger¡¯s were defending the mortal. Although it was weird, for now they wouldn¡¯t do anything to him. The ape-like beast released Akata and looked at him weirdly, as did the other beasts.

    The Scarlet Tigers on the other hand, bowed down and said, ¡°Welcome back savior!¡± This scene caused the minds of all the beasts to reel in shock and confusion. Even Akata was lost. He didn¡¯t think that the Scarlet Tiger¡¯s thought that benevolent of him.

    The Scarlet Tiger guard took a step forward and said directly to Akata, ¡°Young Lord Tabet has been waiting for your secluded training to end. He has asked that you see him immediately after you finish. I will call someone to lead the way.¡± With that he gestured Akata over and told him to stand inside of the palace.

    All of the beasts thought that this was crazy and that they were hallucinating. They had never ever treated a mortal this well before. Yet, the leading tribe of this place was actually welcoming this mortal with open arms and even calling him savior?Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website.

    Akata dusted off his clothes and nodded his head. In truth he was actually very scared that he would have lost his life just then. He didn¡¯t even qualify to resist that ape-like beast just then. His life was literally in the hands of that beast.

    ¡®I definitely need to get stronger. There are way too many people who could effortlessly kill me as I am right now.¡¯ Akata thought to himself, still shaken. He walked through the entrance and into the palace.

    Most of the beasts looked at him strangely. In the Scarlet Tiger¡¯s eyes could be seen praise, but in the other beast¡¯s eyes could be seen confusion.

    Once Akata entered he saw that the inside of the palace was simply huge. It was covered with golden walls and floors and had many places to rest. There was a stage and even a place to eat. The palace looked to have many rooms within it and Akata could even see a place that led downwards, clearly that went to the cave that was under this palace.

    As soon as Akata walked in, a Scarlet Tiger greeted him. ¡°Hello savior, my name is Lawou, one of the servants here. I will now lead you to where Young Lord Tabet is.¡± She spoke softly and with devotion.

    To Akata, it seemed as if since the announcement that changes would be happening, the Scarlet Tiger¡¯s were filled with much more happiness and hope for the future. It was a great fundamental change for them on a whole.

    Akata nodded his head in agreement and followed behind Lawou. Everywhere he passed there was gold. However, he knew that this wasn¡¯t normal gold but rather, the Outer Element of Holy blessing the various areas of the palace.

    Soon, Akata arrived at a room that was filled with gold. Inside of the room he saw a young Scarlet Tiger sitting there with his eyes closed and two runes circling around him. There was a purple rune and a green rune. Each rune held all of his insights into the elements they corresponded to. Purple was the Inner Element of Illusions while green was the Inner Element of Wood.

    The two runes slowly grew closer to each other, until they overlapped. The runes attempted to superimpose on each other and gradually they started to look like one rune. Colors flashed and an intense pressure started to radiate out from the runes as the combining process started. If it was successful, Tabet would be able to wield those two elements together. But if it failed, it would mean his insights into the two elements were lacking and he would have to spend more time learning.

    Akata simply waited there as he watched Tabet attempt to combine the two different runes. Balance was one of the most hardest things to achieve in nature. But if balance was achieved then, overwhelming changes would occur, whether positive or negative.

    After roughly a half an hour the two runes finally became one and Tabet opened his eyes. Lawou had long since left to attend to other matters, but Akata was still there. He laughed heartily and said, ¡°Congratulations Tabet on fusing two different runes.¡± Akata smiled genuinely toward Tabet and walked forward.

    Tabet saw Akata standing there and immediately called out, ¡°Akata! I¡¯m glad to see you.¡± Tabet was about to get up when Akata stopped him.

    ¡°No no no. You need to focus on remembering this feeling before you forget and have to try all over again.¡± Akata said sternly.

    It was only then did Tabet remember what he was doing. ¡°Ah!¡± He closed his eyes and began to focus his mind on the fusion of the two runes. After a bit of time he let out a breath and waved his hand, dispersing the rune. He opened his eyes and smiled merrily as he got up. ¡°Hahaha. It seems like it¡¯s been forever since I last saw you.¡± Tabet said happily.

    ¡°It¡¯s only been three weeks at most.¡± Akata replied.

    ¡°Yeah, but a lot has happened in these three weeks. I¡¯m sure you¡¯ve noticed that right. You¡¯ve probably just gotten out of secluded training so let me show you around. I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll be surprised.¡± Tabet laughed.

    ¡°Sure why not? We can catch up while we walk around also. Let¡¯s go.¡± Akata laughed as well.

    The two then set off out of the palace and walked around the island. Tabet showed the trading areas, the hunting groups, and the villages. He told Akata about the various tribes that were brought in and what they could do.

    ¡°All in all, I say about ten different tribes have been brought in and tens of different beasts. The most notable tribes would be the Meteor Wolf Star Tribe controlled by the Star Wolves, the Earthen Beast Tribe controlled by the Gatorapes, and the Flying Dragon Snake Tribe controlled by the Wyrms. They are the top tribes besides my own Scarlet Rune Tribe.

    Those three tribes are considered top tribes because of only one thing, each of them have an expert who has reached the Temporal Rank. However, my grandfather is the strongest and also one of the youngest so he has the most power and influence. If Great Priest Bayou didn¡¯t betray the tribe, then we would have two experts in the Temporal Rank, but alas¡­

    Anyways, that¡¯s most of what has happened so far. Pretty much just growing and expanding our power and influence. Soon, we¡¯ll be able to grow to even higher heights. All of these beasts were just like us, cast from the mainland and forced to live by ourselves, so it was pretty easy getting them to join us.

    Ah! I almost forgot. Hehe. Grandfather let me pick a name for this place and guess what I call it¡­ Great Aka Tribe! My father said it wouldn¡¯t be good to use your whole name so I just used a piece of it. Hehe.¡± Tabet laughed.

    Akata just looked on helplessly and laughed alongside him. But their laughter was soon interrupted by an abrupt snort.

    ¡°So it seems as if that mortal dares to show his face around here¡­ Eh? What are you doing with him Tabet?¡± A savage voice called out.

    Tabet and Akata both turned around to see three beasts behind them. In the middle they saw a black wolf with fur that looked like the galaxy coldly looking at them.

 Chapter 86: Main Arena Battle

    All five of them stood there looking at each other. The only one who had an indifferent look was Akata. Clearly, he didn¡¯t really care about the situation at all,

    The Star Wolf, Alabasta, snorted coldly and took a step forward. ¡°So you ran away all the way to here huh? And it seems that you¡¯re trying to cozy up to Tabet as well. Well no matter, I¡¯ll still rip your throat out.¡± With that Alabasta pounced towards Akata.

    Tabet got in front of Akata and shielded him from Alabasta. ¡°Alabasta! You¡¯re taking things too far. He isn¡¯t anyone you can just kill. When it comes to status or strength he is still above you!¡± Tabet yelled out and swiped a paw in Alabasta¡¯s direction. That paw strike held the power of his cultivation base and the element of wood. It was extremely sturdy.

    Alabasta just snorted again and swiped his own paw in Tabet¡¯s direction. His paw seemed to hold a whole universe within it. A neon light sprang up that held the power of stars within it. ¡°Humph! Don¡¯t utter nonsense to me.¡±

    Boom!

    The sounding boom made the land crack below them. Tabet ended up taking three steps back while Alabasta took four. Alabasta became enraged and yelled out, ¡°Why are you protecting this mortal?!¡± Although he was enraged he knew that the Scarlet Tiger¡¯s controlled this territory so he wouldn¡¯t go on a rampage. Even with his status he wouldn¡¯t be able to escape punishments.

    ¡°Humph. He is naturally the savior of our tribe. He saved us from certain death and he also happens to be my friend.¡± Tabet said earnestly and honestly.

    Pina and Gorgon just stood behind watching all of this play out. They wanted to observe things first before deciding on what to do. But after hearing Tabet¡¯s words they couldn¡¯t just stand back now.

    The snake-like wyrm beast, Pina, spoke out and asked, ¡°Tabet¡­ is this true? A mortal really saved your tribe and now you¡¯re protecting him?¡± This was a serious matter for beasts. Mortals were the natural enemies of them and for a powerful tribe like the Scarlet Rune Tribe to be protecting one would obviously bring up much heated discussion.

    ¡°That is correct. And not just me, but my whole tribe as well is protecting him. If there is anything that is off limits, it is the harming of this mortal right here, Akata.¡± Tabet said with sharp eyes and a clear voice. His head was still facing Alabasta, and it seemed that his words were specifically meant for him.

    Alabasta simply snorted. Gorgon, the ape-like Gatorape, looked at what was happening but didn¡¯t say a word. He had already received word of a mortal that was deemed off limits from a beast within his tribe, the guard at the entrance of the palace, therefore he knew about Akata¡¯s status. But even so, seeing Tabet stick up for him like this still made for conflicting thoughts to pop up in his head.

    Alabasta looked on with cold eyes and said, ¡°Well even so, he made a fool of me and ran out of our fight earlier. How do you expect to compensate for that?¡± It seemed as if Alabasta just wanted to vent his anger, so to do that he found a way create some action for himself.

    Akata frowned and finally spoke up. ¡°I didn¡¯t pick a fight with you. As soon as I exited my secluded training I ran into a small Lunar Bear. That bear called for its mother and then the mother called out to the surrounding beasts. I wanted to train some so I decided to test some skills but then I got bored and decided to leave. There was never a true fight going on.¡±

    Alabasta, became even more enraged at this. There wasn¡¯t even a true fight? He got bored? Akata was basically saying that he didn¡¯t hold any of the beasts in that group with any regard.This was a complete humiliation to him. In fact, Pina and Gorgon even felt some humiliation at Akata¡¯s words.This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

    Akata didn¡¯t realize that his wording may had came out wrong until he actually said it. But by then it was too late.

    ¡°Then how about I challenge you to a fight right now then! I don¡¯t care if you don¡¯t accept. I¡¯ll drag your body to the arena if I have to!¡± A neon aura started to spread out from Alabasta as he ground his sharp saber teeth.

    Akata knew that he had messed up and that this would happen so he just sighed and nodded. ¡°Fine let¡¯s just get this over with.¡± By now, Akata didn¡¯t even care what he said or how he said it, he just wanted to get this situation over with.

    ¡°Wait you clearly disregarded us as well! How do you expect to compensate us?¡± Gorgon finally spoke up, his voice deep.

    Akata just looked over disinterested and said, ¡°I¡¯ll take all of you on then. That way this can go faster.¡± He then turned and looked at Tabet. ¡°Can you lead me to the arena that wolf was talking about?¡±

    Tabet had a helpless look on his face as he shook his head. ¡°It¡¯s this way follow me.¡± The whole walk to the arena was silent and filled with a hostile air. The most hostile of all was Alabasta. His eyes swept back and forth between Akata and Tabet. Completely opposite of his attitude, Akata had his mind on another thing altogether, he clearly wasn¡¯t concerned about this.

    ¡®From my earlier battle I can tell that wielding a scythe with one hand is much more difficult to do. Even with the aid of the World Omen of Lord Dullahan it is very hard to adapt. I need to figure out a way to get my arm back somehow, otherwise when I meet stronger opponents, I will definitely be at a disadvantage.¡¯

    ¡°Noluck, do you know of any ways that I can recover my arm?¡± Akata asked from within him.

    ¡°Humph, of course I know plenty of ways to recover body parts. If you were a strong body cultivator then you could just regrow one easily, but since you aren¡¯t you¡¯ll have to use some other methods. Let¡¯s see¡­¡± Noluck went into thought for a moment before speaking up again. ¡°The best I can think of that would be easy for you to obtain right now is a prosthetic arm. Though it will be weak there are plenty of ways of making it stronger.¡±

    ¡°Where can I get a prosthetic arm from?¡± Akata asked in confusion.

    ¡°Humph. Do I have to do everything around here? Try using a plant to make up your arm. They have the best regenerative properties there are and are quite resilient.¡± Noluck said with a haughty air.

    ¡°A plant? How am I supposed to use a plant as an arm? I¡¯m going to wave it in the air? And that doesn¡¯t mean I can hold onto things like I can do with my hands¡­¡± Akata said.

    ¡°You¡¯re a plant cultivator, in fact you¡¯re more of a true plant cultivator considering you have a plant cultivation base. But then again you aren¡¯t a plant. But even still, you have a plant cultivation base so controlling plants should come easy to you. Normal true plant cultivators are plants and therefore have more control over the certain plant that they are, try finding a suitable plant for you. And when you do just control it to make it into an arm. Like how beasts and other creatures can look like a mortal, so can plants.¡± Noluck said.

    ¡°A plant suitable to me¡­¡± Akata thought about all the plants that he had come into contact with. There was the Illusory Phoenix Lily which had a boundless life force and illusory properties, this would be a great match for him. He then thought about the Blood Lotus which was able to absorb the blood of opponents and use it to strengthen itself, this was something similar to what he could do and could possibly use it to improve himself.

    There was also the Five Elements Rose which had different elements he could use to gain enlightenment of. And also not to mention the Demonic Spirit Poppy, which he was supposed to find with Peizhi Xiuying, that could create illusions and cause mental hallucinations that can attack the mind. There were many more plants that could be used and would provide many benefits to him, but alas only one could be used as his arm.

    Akata went into deep thought over this matter and before he knew it he was snapped out of thought by a voice. ¡°Akata we¡¯re here! Are you listening?¡± Tabet¡¯s voice flowed into Akata¡¯s ear and woke him from his thinking.

    ¡°Ah!¡± Akata picked his head up and looked around to see a grand field of many arenas. There were many young and some older beasts either fighting or spectating. Groups could be seen chatting and exchanging pointers to various others. It was as if the arenas had there own little community. It kind of reminded Akata of the Training Field back at the Red Cloud Sect.

    But besides the various beasts, what caught Akata¡¯s attention more were the arena stages themselves. There were tens of them, and each one was made from golden sand that contained traces of the holy element. It brought about a rich aura that bore into the minds and thoughts of everyone present. Akata couldn¡¯t even be helped but be pleased.

    ¡°We¡¯re going to the main arena for our battle.¡± A savage voice interrupted Akata¡¯s reverie and caused him to look over to see Alabasta walking towards the middle of the field. He, along with the others started to follow behind.

    The sight of people heading to the main arena caught the attention of some beasts in the area. That was because there was only one path that led to the stage of the main arena and not just anybody could fight on there. So when people were heading there, they obviously had some status.

    Soon, a crowd started to gather over to get a good look at who was heading to the main arena. The spectator stands of the main arena were accessible to anyone so a huge crowd quickly formed. Even others who were on other arenas came over for a look. And what they saw brought excitement.

 Chapter 87: Pina The Wyrm

    The main arena was different from all the other arenas because it was built into the ground. That way the crowd would have to look down into the arena to watch the match. The people fighting within would also have to take a special path to go inside of the main arena to get to the stage.

    Hundreds of spectating beasts were looking down into the main arena to get a good look at who it was that had entered. Not just anybody could go inside as they pleased. If they were caught going in then they would be punished, so normally people just stayed out.

    The reason for this was because this was the place where Akata and Tabet had fought and where Great Lord Taple made his speech to the whole tribe. It was seen as a sort of holy spot for the tribe therefore they made it into a holy place to fight. A grand place to fight. Not even every member of the Scarlet Rune Tribe could just walk inside of this arena.

    Only higher up individuals or fights that the higher ups agreed on could be held in this place. Thus Tabet, the Young Lord of the Scarlet Rune Tribe was able to get inside. Alabasta, Pina, and Gorgon, were also Young Lords of their respective tribes as well. But being the Lord of their tribe wouldn¡¯t grant them access to this place, they were granted access because their tribes were the top strongest, because they had someone in the Temporal Rank.

    Even though it wasn¡¯t stated to Tabet whether Akata had access or not, it was right to assume that he did. This was because he was seen as the savior of the Scarlet Tigers, how could he not be able to have access. He was also the person that fought Tabet in this very fought.

    There weren¡¯t any guards preventing anyone from entering the main arena just bystanders watching by. That was because anyone was able to fight here. Only, if you weren¡¯t allowed to, after your fight ended you would be given your punishment. But, not everybody was daring to take on the punishment so fights here didn¡¯t happen often.

    The five walked into the main arena and stood across from each other. Tabet and Akata on one side and Pina, Gorgon, and Alabasta on the other. Alabasta gave a side glance at Pina and Gorgon and snorted. ¡°You can start with them. I don¡¯t want them getting in my way. Call me when you¡¯re done. I don¡¯t care if you lose either, I¡¯m still fighting you.¡± With that he walked off to the side.

    Pina took a step forward and said, ¡°I¡¯ll go first then. I hope you will accept my challenge.¡± With that she transformed into a beautiful lady with a white robe. She had green flowy hair that reached down to her lower back. She also had big green glowing eyes that made her seem even more beautiful.

    However, her beauty escaped Akata¡¯s mind. All he could see with his nature sense was her spiritual self that was tied to nature. Therefore almost all these beasts looked the same to him with a few key differences between them. So, Akata didn¡¯t spare a second glance at the sudden change in her appearance.

    ¡°That¡¯s fine with me.¡± He said calmly and proceeded to walk forward. ¡°Tabet just leave this to me. I¡¯ll be fine.¡± Akata still had on his ragged red furs that made him seem weak beyond compare. It even made Pina feel like she was bullying the weak at this moment.

    Tabet nodded his head and said, ¡°Don¡¯t take them lightly. Each of their tribes has someone in the Temporal Rank which is why they are regarded as being high class. They are also very strong as well.¡± He gave another look at Akata and then walked off, Gorgon following behind him.

    Finally the stage was clear with only Pina and Akata on it facing each other. Pina looked at him and said, ¡°I won¡¯t go easy on you even though you¡¯re missing an arm.¡±

    Akata looked back at her and said, ¡°But you just changed into your mortal form, making you weaker. Aren¡¯t you already going easy on me?¡±The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

    Pina twitched her eyes. This was true. Being in her mortal form made her slightly weaker than her beast form. She gave a harrumph and then waved her hand sending fireballs shooting toward Akata.

    ¡®Fire magic huh? She seems to have some skill in it as well. I say it¡¯s at the skill level where Tabet was with illusions. No matter though.¡¯ Akata quickly surmised the skill level his opponent had with fire. With his nature sense he was able to ¡°see¡± things much more in depth and clearly. Thus he was able to determine the strength and insights that his opponents had with certain skills.

    Akata waved his own hand causing fire to spew forth as well. A wall of flames shot up around him and headed toward the fireballs. His fire looked black with traces of red in it. This was his hellfire that had he hadn¡¯t used in combat for a long while.

    However, this hellfire was noticeably weaker than what he had wanted to output. ¡®Must be because of the arena being infused with the holy element.¡¯ Akata quickly thought. With another wave of his hand he caused blue runes to spring up around him and expand until they became drops of water. These drops of water then formed around him into a water shield.

    The fireballs quickly reached the hellfire and easily bore through it. Pina let out a breath of relief as the feeling she got from that hellfire was sinister. Her fireballs then headed straight for the water barrier around Akata. It quickly approached and came in contact with the barrier. But the barrier seemed to be a lot stronger than the fire that Akata had cast out and caused the fireballs to dissipate easily. The water barrier still stood as if nothing had happened to it.

    ¡°Your skill with water is very impressive, but if that is all you can do and muster then you might as well give up now.¡± Pina started to run forward at Akata while simultaneously waving her hands in the air. Her speed was very impressive and almost instantly, she closed the ten meter gap between them to appear in front of his barrier.

    ¡°Take this.¡± Her hands flashed and fire began to burn in one while her other hand seemed to control the air around it. She put her hands together and a huge blast of fire came rushing forth onto the water barrier.

    Akata slightly knitted his brows and waved his hand to focus the water barrier on one point as to increase its defense. However, even after he did this, the large amount of fire and the power it brought was too much for the barrier. It easily made its way through the water barrier and towards Akata. Akata having little time to think flashed his hand forward and then closed it into the shape of a fist.

    ¡°Burn.¡± He said softly. All of a sudden black flames started to appear within the fire that Pina had cast out. The black flames quickly ate away at the fire and burned it into nothingness. Akata waved his hand sending the black flames toward Pina. Pina¡¯s eyes went wide with shock and she quickly shot back while roaring. She then transformed into a snake with wings and flew into the air, barely evading the black fire.

    Sweat poured down her scaly body as she had barely escaped that catastrophe. It had been a really close call just then and if it wasn¡¯t for her super fast speed, she would have been engulfed in those flames. She watched as the black flames slowly dissipated in the air then she turned her head to look deeply at Akata.

    ¡°What was that just now?!¡± She screamed, clearly shaken from the shock and near death experience she just had. Tabet and Gorgon were also shaken from what they had just seen. Even Alabasta looked more closely at the match now. And that¡¯s to say nothing of the crowd looking down at the arena below them.

    ¡°Oh. That was just a little trick I pulled but it didn¡¯t work. I just infused my fire into yours and slowly made your fire¡¯s strength aid mine. Then I used the control of my fire to burn yours away while taking its full energy and used it to attack you. You may not understand what I just said but that¡¯s because my insights into fire are much greater than yours.¡± Akata said this casually as if it were a simple matter to him. Which, in reality, it really was simple for him. Although the concept was difficult to comprehend and understand, it was easy for him.

    Pina looked at him deeply some more and then gritted her teeth. ¡°Well you may have better skill than me in fire, but that isn¡¯t my best trait.¡±With that she flew around Akata in the air at an increasing speed. Soon, a tornado started to form around Akata. She stopped above the tornado and then screeched inside causing a soundwave to emit through it towards Akata.

    Akata knitted his brows once more. ¡®I don¡¯t have any skill regarding air and I haven¡¯t came into any contact with any sound attacks. This is great practice for me. How should I combat it then?¡¯ He went into thought while he was holding his head trying to concentrate from the ear piercing pain the soundwave attack brought.

    ¡®Sound comes from the air vibrating. With this tornado the air can¡¯t escape so it will all be focused on me and not spread out.¡¯ With these simple thoughts Akata came up with an idea. He took in a deep breath and waved his hand causing a giant blue rune to appear below his feet and one above. The two runes then created a massive wave of water blocking out most of the sound. The top rune shot out water toward Pina making her move over to the side to evade.

    ¡®Humph. Trifling attack. He¡¯s probably out of ideas to deal with this sound attack.¡¯ As soon as she finished speaking however, she noticed something out of the corner of her eye. Akata came out of the torrent of water that had shot up and in he was waving his hand.

    A giant tan rune appeared above Pina. Then a massive block of sand came pouring out of it. The sand blocked her vision. The next thing that she felt was a forceful hit that sent her flying to the ground.

    Boom!

 Chapter 88: Gorgon The Gatorape

    The resulting clash happened so fast that it was hard to comprehend. Akata¡¯s combination of moves and tricks were flawlessly stringed together to come out on top and prevail over Pina.

    The blue runes he used earlier served four different purposes. First, he used it to block the sound of Pina¡¯s attack. Secondly, it was to be used as a distraction for Pina. Third, was coverage for him to get into Pina¡¯s range. And fourth, was to shoot himself into the air at a fast enough speed to get into range. The quick use of this made sure Pina didn¡¯t expect this.

    Once Akata was within range of Pina he further blocked her vision and impeded her by causing a large amount of sand to fall from the sky on top of her. And finally once her vision was blocked he delivered a powerful punch backed by his red rune to send her flying into the ground. All of this took less than two seconds of time to play out and was why Akata won so easily.

    Akata landed on the ground softly and walked over to Pina. Although he had hit her into the ground, it wasn¡¯t hard enough to actually damage anything, after all this was just a challenge not a life and death battle. He bent down and stretched a hand out to help her up off the ground.

    Pina looked up at him with confusion and bitterness.

    ¡°Staying on the ground won¡¯t do you any good.¡± Akata smiled and said as he helped her up. ¡°That was a good fight. I really learned a lot from it. We should definitely fight again sometime.¡± Akata said while beaming with joy.

    This fight truly did bring him a rush.It had been a long time since he had actually truly fought someone and had to use some skill in to win. Even though he had fought Tabet, that was a battle where they could only use one element so it wasn¡¯t much to work with. This duel however, he was able to try things that he had been thinking over while in seclusion and was able to gain more insights. It really did help him out and he had fun doing it.

    Pina looked at him with more confusion. ¡°Mn. We should.¡± She said aloud. ¡®How is he so strong, yet his strength is only at the 7th Grade? Not only his strength but his combat skills are definitely nothing to laugh at. It¡¯s like he was made just to fight.¡¯ She thought to herself.

    However, she wasn¡¯t the only one thinking that. Gorgon, Alabasta, and even Tabet were thinking the same thing. The crowd above them were also in discussion. By this time, more and more beasts had shown up to watch what was going on below.

    ¡°That must be the mortal everyone is talking about. How is he so strong?¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s our savior Akata of course he¡¯s strong. He even went toe-to-toe with our Young Lord.¡±

    ¡°Ahaha! That¡¯s our savior for you! Of course that Pina girl was no match for him.¡±

    Various shouts and cries could be heard in the crowd but the shouts didn¡¯t reach the main arena below. Pina walked off the stage and went to stand alone. There, she went into a deep thought. Only she knew what she was thinking about.

    After seeing Pina walk off stage Gorgon looked over to Alabasta and said, ¡°I¡¯ll be going next.¡± Then he jumped over to the center of the arena stage.

    Alabasta didn¡¯t even pay him any attention. He just gave a snort and continued to keep an eye on Akata. His body seemed to disinterested but his eyes showed a rare trait, that of anticipation!

    Gorgon was a Gatorape, a beast that looked like an ape but had alligator skin. They were extremely tough to deal with because their defense was too formidable. By the time they reached the Beast Rank, their skin was comparable to steel. Not only that, but their attacks were just as strong as their defense. Thus, Gatorapes were very hard to deal with.If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.

    Gorgon stood in front of Akata and sat down. This action caused Akata to become confused. ¡°What are you doing?¡± He asked curiously.

    ¡°I¡¯m waiting for you to recover. You used some big techniques in your last match and even if you have battle prowess as high as yours, you¡¯re still at the 7th Grade. Therefore, you must have used a bit of energy. So I want you at your peak state.¡± Gorgon said deeply but meaningfully.

    Akata nodded to him. He had indeed used up quite a bit of energy last match even though he didn¡¯t show it. If his battle prowess was at the just a hair away from the Great Circle then his energy consumption would be at that level as well. And being at the 7th Grade meant that he had spent a bunch of energy. That was why Akata didn¡¯t use that many attacks and conserved as much energy as possible in his fight against Pina.

    Akata sat down and meditated to recover his energy back to its full peak. With his nature energy, drawing on nature to help him recover made gaining his energy go much faster. It only took half an hour for him to be back at his peak again. Akata opened his eyes and stood up, battle intent surging.

    At the same time, Gorgon stood up as well. ¡°I don¡¯t like being in my mortal form so I¡¯ll just stay in my beast form. Come at me anytime.¡± He said as he prepared himself to take Akata¡¯s attack.

    Akata nodded his head and then waved his hand causing a line of orange runes to appear. The runes then transformed into fireballs that shot at Gorgon from all directions. It was a grand display and was beautiful to see.

    Gorgon stood there motionless. He took in a deep breath and stomped his foot on the ground. When his foot crashed down it caused some of the earth around him to shoot up and act like a shield for him. The fireballs crashed into the earth shield and was blasted apart.

    Gorgon still stood in the same place as he punched forward sending a chunk of rock flying toward Akata. The rock moved extremely fast as it went in Akata¡¯s direction. It seemed like an unstoppable force that would seek its target until it either made contact or was destroyed.

    ¡®I can¡¯t take that head on.¡¯ Akata thought to himself. The lower half of his body became dark and misty, the the rest of his body followed. Soon, his whole body was like a shadow as he quickly evaded the flying rock.

    ¡°Heh. That trick again? Speed won¡¯t save you against me.¡± Gorgon said as he smacked his hands on the ground causing it to tremble and crack. The ground began to soften until it turned into mud.

    Akata zipped across the ground until he suddenly slowed down by way too much. His speed while using his Shadowfeet skill was now comparable to him walking in his normal form. Which is suffice to say that he was extremely slow.

    Gorgon didn¡¯t stop after he turned the ground into mud. He threw out two more punches making two more rocks fly in Akata direction. Then, he himself dashed forth toward Akata. With the assistance of the mud, his speed reached insane levels.

    Akata¡¯s eyes constricted slightly as tried to come up with a way to get out of this situation. ¡®He¡¯s a genius when it comes to fighting. Instantly coming up with a way to stop my speed and then using it to bolster himself as well. It¡¯s almost like my fighting style. Except, my fighting style is much more skillful than his.¡¯

    Akata¡¯s eyes showed with battle intent as he stuck his hand out causing his Bludhaven Scythe to appear. He slashed it out toward the incoming flying rocks with the Guillotine Slice attack. Scythe-light smashed the rocks into rubble.

    Akata knew he couldn¡¯t get out of the path of Gorgon fast enough so instead of trying, he readied himself to receive the blow. Akata waved his scythe in front of him causing a tan rune to appear in front and produce a large amount of sand. He then held his scythe in front of his chest.

    Bang! Boom!

    First Gorgon simply forced his way through the sand by running through it, then he punched Akata¡¯s scythe sending him flying backwards. The punch nearly made Akata cough up blood.

    Even though he was sent flying back, Akata was ready for this and instead of using that to get some distance from Gorgon, he instead made use of it to launch an attack of his own.

    Akata waved his scythe in the air and caused a purple rune to appear behind him. A ball was produced and he used it to bounce off and head straight for Gorgon. He was going in for head on attack.

    ¡°What is wrong with you?! You can¡¯t beat him head on!¡± Tabet couldn¡¯t help but scream out towards Akata for his recklessness. But Akata didn¡¯t listen as turned into a shadow and gained even more speed.

    Gorgon, after sending Akata flying, didn¡¯t stop his pursuit as he headed to Akata¡¯s position. But after seeing Akata heading back to him, he thought something was wrong. ¡®He should know he can¡¯t beat me head on. He must have a trick up his sleeve.¡¯ Even though he slowed down his pursuit he didn¡¯t stop and still went after Akata.

    Akata stopped using Shadowfeet and held his scythe out to the side of him. His eyes became extremely focused and soon, golden light erupted from his body. The pressure in the area immediately intensified as Akata rotated his golden rune. The pressure caused Gorgon to become sluggish and uneasy but he still grit his teeth and ran towards Akata.

    He stomped on the ground to make some of the earth stick out then he sent punches out causing rocks to fly toward Akata. But Akata was prepared this time.

    ¡°The same trick won¡¯t work twice on me.¡±He said calmly as he waved his scythe causing a blue rune to appear under him. It transformed into water and shot up, sending Akata flying into the air, dodging the incoming rocks. After that a giant purple rune appeared beneath his feet making a mist form around him. Out of the mist came a skeletal figure clothed in black robes. The skeleton was glowing with golden light bringing tremendous pressure to Gorgon.

    Gorgon roared and said, ¡°Come at me!¡± At the same time growing in size to a height of ten meters. He stared at Akata who was in the air looking down at him. The scene made the crowd reel with excitement.

 Chapter 89: Formidable Opponent

    Gorgon was already a tall beast as he stood five meters in height before. Now he was an absolutely towering presence. He looked completely intimidating, however, Akata didn¡¯t see any of that.

    Akata looked cooly at Gorgon as the skeletal figure and then began to descend. He waved his hand causing another purple rune to appear and produce a ball which he used to bounce off of and shoot faster toward Gorgon. His speed didn¡¯t stop there as he used his Shadowfeet skill to increase it even further.

    He shot like an arrow toward Gorgon at this utterly astonishing speed that he produced. Akata closed his eyes and put his scythe to the side once more, then the area around him became calm and tranquil. It was a kind of calm that made one¡¯s spine tingle. To Gorgon, it became extremely silent all of a sudden and fear rose up within his heart and mind.

    Gorgon waved his hand out in front of him toward Akata and yelled, ¡°Earthen Spikes!¡± The ground around him suddenly trembled and soon, ten spikes shot up from the ground towards Akata¡¯s body. They were sharp beyond belief and stabbed toward him with ferocity. Also, Gorgon stomped the ground making it turn into mud beneath his feet.

    Akata was still in a calm state and before the spikes reached him his eyes snapped open. Akata twisted his body midair and avoided two spikes in a row. He then hit another spike with his scythe using the collision to bounce off and avoid another spike. After that he caused a purple rune to appear beneath his feet and turn into a ball which he bounced off of and sped down even faster than before. His speed was too fast and he zoomed past the rest of the spikes heading his way.

    This caused Gorgon¡¯s mind to reel with shock. He clapped his hands together and all of a sudden his body started to turn grey. His alligator skin seemed to harden and his body grew a bit larger as well. He then pulled his arm back and prepared to punch Akata straight on.

    Akata was still calm as he got into range of Gorgon. The golden light shining off of him suddenly disappeared, his skeletal form disappeared, and his scythe disappeared. He returned to his normal state but the calm around him was still there.

    Gorgon couldn¡¯t hear anything as silence still covered the air. He threw his punch toward Akata with all his force.

    Bang!

    The punch landed straight on Akata¡¯s body and a boom resounded in the ears of all the nearby beasts. But after that, his body just shattered like glass. Then the glass-like pieces fell to the ground and dispersed into thin air like motes of light and went away.

    Gorgon stood there shocked as was everybody else. It was then that Gorgon looked down to see a slash across his arm that trailed all the way up to his shoulder. The slash was light and shallow to the point that only a trickle of blood oozed out.

    ¡°Hehe. Give up?¡±

    Gorgon finally heard something, but the first thing he heard was Akata¡¯s voice that was clearly playful. He whipped his head around to punch Akata but as soon as he did his eyes widened and he stopped in place.

    Right in front of him he saw Akata and also¡­ his tail! Akata was holding his tail in his hand, yet the strange part about it was that his tail wasn¡¯t attached to his body. Akata had actually cut his tail off.

    While it might not seem like a huge thing to do, and in fact a tail to Gatorapes wasn¡¯t even that important since they would eventually lose it upon growing up, the fact was that his tail was just as defensively strong as his own body. That means that the same force used to cut through his tail would be the same amount of force used to cut through his own body. How scary of a fact could that be? Not only that, but his body had been reinforced to the maximum with his tribe¡¯s skill, yet Akata was still able to cut through him.The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.

    Gorgon had thought that it was already astonishing enough that Akata was able to slash through his arm deep enough to cause blood to trickle, but to see Akata behind him holding his own tail¡­ that was something he never would have thought possible. It showed how much attack power Akata had and the skill he had as well.

    He may not know what trick Akata used to get by him, but at the moment that didn¡¯t matter because he knew that he had lost. The speed in which Akata did it was even more inconceivable for him. All he could do was shake his head in defeat. ¡°I¡¯ve lost.¡± He said.

    He gave Akata a long deep look and then walked off stage, returning to his normal form. As he was walking off he said, ¡°This won¡¯t be our last fight. In a true battle of life and death, things might turn out different. As for my tail¡­ keep it.¡± With that he didn¡¯t return to the side of the stage but instead exited the arena.

    Akata looked at him thoughtfully and nodded at his words. That was true. In a real life or death battle things would most certainly have gone differently. Such as the instance when Akata was stuck in the mud. Gorgon could have used many other ways to harm Akata severely but since this was just a duel, he didn¡¯t use them.

    Akata put away the tail and looked over to Alabasta who would be his last opponent. Alabasta had his head down and eyes closed and when Akata looked his way he spoke. ¡°Don¡¯t spend your time looking at me, you should be recovering right now.¡± He spoke savagely and then went back to being silent.

    Seeing as Alabasta was also giving him time to recover, Akata sat down in meditation. He had spent a lot of energy during that battle with Gorgon. More than three-quarters of his energy had been used up. In fact, if Alabasta hadn¡¯t suggested letting him recover, Akata would have himself. He didn¡¯t show it during the fight but as soon as he sat down in meditation, his face turned slightly pale.

    It took Akata roughly an hour or two to fully recover. Although these times seemed long, to cultivators like them, this was nothing at all. However, Akata took a bit of time to review his fight with Pina and Gorgon and gain some insights.

    ¡®Pina¡¯s use of elements were okay individually but when she combined them they became much more formidable. All in all, she combined fire with air so that it would greatly empower her fire. She also combined air and sound so that her sound attack would be trapped and focused and stronger. Her speed was also at another level. I would only be able to barely surpass it using my Shadowfeet skill.

    She¡¯s not much of a close quarters fighter and therefore focuses on long range attacks. She didn¡¯t focus on defense as her speed would usually great enough to evade her opponents. Only by constantly tricking her would you really be able to land a hit on her, and that hit would have to count.

    Gorgon, on the other hand, is completely different from her. He¡¯s much more refined for close combat than Pina was. His defense was very formidable as I figure I would only be able to harm him with an extremely dangerous skill or my scythe arts. His use of the earth element is outstanding and he has many uses for it. He used it to slow me down to a crawl and used that same move to make himself far faster than me.

    However, he relies too heavily on his defense and thinks that it is impregnable. If I truly wanted to kill him it would have been an easy manner at that last moment. I even underestimated my own scythe art thinking it wouldn¡¯t be enough to hurt him that much. The second stance of World Omen of Lord Dullahan¡¯s scythe art is the Silent Meteor Kill. It uses immeasurable speed to produce much more force than the scythe would otherwise be capable of. If it wasn¡¯t for me wielding the scythe with one arm, I would¡¯ve easily been able to use it without doing all of that extra preparation. But alas I need to do more to compensate.¡¯ Akata sighed internally and then opened his eyes and looked toward Alabasta.

    Alabasta didn¡¯t look back as he just appeared on the stage in front of Akata. Akata looked at him with a bit of caution. ¡®I didn¡¯t even see him move. Clearly his speed is much faster than Pina¡¯s.¡¯ Standing up, Akata took in a deep breath.

    Alabasta looked at Akata with disdain and then changed into his mortal form. ¡°I don¡¯t find you worthy to face me in my real form.¡± He said savagely. ¡°I¡¯ll only take you seriously if you complete a certain condition. But I won¡¯t tell you what that condition is.¡± After that Alabasta became silent.

    He now wore a black robe with white spots on it. His hair was black and his eyes seemed to be filled with the endless universe. He looked imposing but his aura made him seem weak.

    Akata wasn¡¯t going to take him lightly because of this however. ¡®I should probably probe him to see what skill level he is at. Seeing his speed, let me start off with a fast attack and follow up with a strong one to push him back.¡¯ Akata waved held his hand out causing his scythe to appear then he sent out a strike, Guillotine Slice! The scythe-light moved at incredible speeds. Akata didn¡¯t stop there as he immediately followed up with a large fireball of hellfire.

    The two attacks came one right after the other. The scythe-light was the first to reach Alabasta. Alabasta didn¡¯t even look at it as he held up his hand toward the arc of black light and crushed it as soon as it came into contact with his palm. He opened his palm again and inside could be seen a neon light. The neon light flew out and collided with the fireball completely destroying it.

    All Akata could do was look on with a blank look.

 Chapter 90: Alabasta The Star Wolf

    Although Akata didn¡¯t put his full power into those two attacks, to be able to casually destroy them was a feat onto itself. Akata watched everything closely and took note of every small thing that had just occurred.

    ¡®What was that neon light just now? It seemed very impressive and with his casualness and the short amount of time he evoked it, it was still able to thoroughly destroy my hellfire. His palms are also tough as well seeing as it shattered my scythe-light so easily.¡¯ Akata then adjusted his battle style accordingly.

    ¡®I don¡¯t have a good read on just how fast he is but I can¡¯t just keep standing here.¡¯ Battle intent surged from Akata as he took a step forward. The scythe in his hand vanished and he waved his hand forward causing numerous blue runes to appear around him and Alabasta. The runes transformed into water that came together to form a huge wave that crashed toward Alabasta.

    Alabasta had his arms crossed as he gave a snort. Neon light emanated from his body and a weird pressure enveloped around his body. The water that came barreling toward him couldn¡¯t even touch him. It was like he was surrounded by an invisible barrier that prevented anything from getting within a certain distance of him. The water simply moved around him.

    Akata frowned at this and decided to go into close combat. He dashed forth and soon was in front of Alabasta. Akata sent out a kick but Alabasta simply lifted his knee to block. Akata then tried to punch several times but all Alabasta had to do was move his head from one side to the other. It wasn¡¯t that Akata wasn¡¯t skilled in fighting, it was just that Alabasta was too good at dodging.

    Akata spun around sending a back kick towards Alabasta which he ended up catching with one hand. But Akata wasn¡¯t done yet as his scythe immediately appeared in his hand and he twisted his body to slice at Alabasta. Alabasta seeing the incoming scythe simply snorted as neon light burst off of him sending Akata tumbling back.

    ¡®What is up with this guy? He¡¯s only at the 10th Grade right? How can he be so strong? None of my attacks are able to hit him and he¡¯s even going easy. He hasn¡¯t even truly attacked me yet.¡¯ Akata frowned even harder.

    ¡°Tsk. Is that all you¡¯ve got? I guess I really did think to highly of you. For one, you¡¯re too slow and for second your power is greatly lacking.¡± Alabasta said with clear disdain in his voice.

    Akata¡¯s eyes twitched. Was Alabasta mocking him? Too slow? Lacking in power? Since when? ¡°Hehe. We¡¯ll see then.¡± Giving a deranged laugh Akata stood up from the ground and caused his scythe to vanish. His eyes glowed with a red and gold tint.

    A bright golden light emanated off of him the next instant. Soon, a crimson light mixed in with the golden light. ¡°I may be lacking in speed at the moment but one thing I¡¯m not lacking in¡­ is power.¡± Akata waved his hand causing tens of giant blue runes to appear all over the stage. Normally, Akata would only use maybe one or two giant runes at a time but this time he was using tens of them. Clearly, he was showing just how much power he could produce.The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

    The giant runes then transformed into huge waves of water and came surging forth toward Alabasta. The sheer amount of water caused his eyebrows to knit together. ¡°Humph. Trying to just use a bigger number? That won¡¯t work.¡±

    But before he could do anything, Akata was already well into his next move. He waved his hand again causing tens of giant orange runes to appear above the stage. They all transformed into a huge inferno that came crashing downwards. A sea of water around him and a sea of fire above.

    Alabasta¡¯s eyes slightly constricted as he waved his hand causing neon light to spring up all around him. He roared and the stage began to tremble and shake. He held his hand up and a small ball of neon light could be seen within. The ball quickly began to grow in size until it was about three meters across. It was bright and looked like a miniature sun. ¡°Combust!¡± Alabasta roared.

    The mini sun then instantly grew to the size of a fingernail and exploded with shocking ferocity. The resulting explosion caused the water and fire to be pushed away and be demolished into nothingness. A huge crater also formed under Alabasta¡¯s feet and the stage was in terrible shape.

    Akata¡¯s eyes went wide with disbelief. He had poured mostly all of his strength into that attack yet Alabasta was still able to defend against it; and without changing out of his mortal form. He was panting and his face was slightly pale but Akata laughed and said, ¡°Hahaha, I made you move after all.¡± He pointed at the spot Alabasta had been at.

    Alabasta looked over and saw that he had indeed moved from his spot. He looked up at Akata and said, ¡°Seems you were able to figure out what the condition was. I guess I¡¯ll be a bit more serious now.¡± He said in a savage voice.

    His eyes glowed and in the blink of an eye he was in front of Akata. He punched out and aimed for Akata¡¯s chest.

    This all happened too fast for Akata. One second he was laughing at Alabasta and the next he was being attacked. The utter speed in which this happened caused Akata¡¯s mind to reel in complete shock. He didn¡¯t even have enough time to put his arms in front of his chest to block the incoming blow heading his way.

    Bang!

    Akata was sent flying across the broken stage. Blood sprayed out of his mouth as he was sent flying backwards. However, Alabasta didn¡¯t stop there as he chased after Akata¡¯s flying body. He waved his hand causing neon light to appear and shoot out. The light moved faster than Akata and was soon behind him. It exploded behind him and caused his body to fly in the other direction toward Alabasta.

    Alabasta, already ready for Akata¡¯s approach, stood there with a savage look in his eyes. He raised his palm in the air to face the incoming Akata. A smile curled atop his face as he felt his heart racing, ¡°Star-¡±

    Alabasta¡¯s face completely changed as he immediately switched tactics. His original plan was to completely assault Akata until he wasn¡¯t able to move anymore. But who would have that Akata would actually be in a condition to attack him?

    Akata felt like a ragdoll being thrown around. But, how could he take a beating just like that? Golden light flashed off of him as well as red light. He roared out and the ground began to shake vigorously. Some crumbling rocks began to congregate around Akata¡¯s hand which had turned into a fist. Akata twisted his body in midair and threw his punch toward Alabasta, sending a rock filled with power toward him.

    Astral Obliteration!

    The rock grew larger and larger and the pressure emanating from it increased as well. The pressure became suffocating almost and it weighed down on the souls of everyone present, the crowd included. Alabasta¡¯s eyes constricted heavily as he raised his hand all the way into the air. Rocks began to gather above his hand and cluster together. A neon light began to shine from the gathered rocks which melded them together. Alabasta then threw his arm out toward the incoming attack of Akata.

    Meteor Star Shot!

    This was a technique passed down in the Meteor Wolf Star Tribe. With a wave of their hand they could send a meteor raining down on their opponent. It was controlled by the star element that they naturally had control over since birth. But since Alabasta didn¡¯t have that high of a cultivation base yet, it couldn¡¯t be fully unleashed.

    Two rocks headed toward each other in shocking fashion and display. One was covered in golden and red light while the other was covered in neon light. However, it was clear that one was much stronger than the other one.

    Boom!

 Chapter 91: Astral Obliteration Is Defeated

    Two rocks of devastating power hurdled toward each other. Akata had displayed his Astral Obliteration while Alabasta had unleashed his Meteor Star Shot. The pressure exuded by the two attacks caused the arena to rumble and the air to shake.

    The Astral Obliteration unleashed by Akata was only the size of a fingernail at first, but then it quickly grew to the size of a head. It didn¡¯t stop there as it continued to grow. As it grew it drew in more energy from Heaven and Earth to power itself. The pressure coming from it made the crowd above inch back to escape it. It was illusory at first but then it began to become more realistic as the ground broke apart and converged upon it. This was far more devastating than any of the previous times he had unleashed this attack.

    However, Alabasta¡¯s Meteor Star Shot wasn¡¯t inferior in the slightest. A rock the size of a small hill covered in neon light blasted toward Akata¡¯s Astral Obliteration. It didn¡¯t grow in size but instead grew brighter and brighter. As the light that showed off of it became brighter, it flew faster and increased its own pressure. The pressure radiating off of it cracked the arena¡¯s ground and caused the faces of some beasts to pale.

    It was even debatable to say that the Meteor Star Shot was even stronger than Astral Obliteration. But, Astal Obliteration quickly gained power with every breath that passed by. Akata was already headed in Alabasta¡¯s direction so it didn¡¯t have much time to power up though.

    The two moves were completely astonishing by themselves, but when they were headed toward each other it was utterly shocking. In fact, some of the weaker beasts had to retreat from the crowd in order to keep from passing out from the enormous amount of pressure.

    Boom!

    Alabasta¡¯s and Akata¡¯s attacks collided together and the blast caused Akata to fly away. Even Alabasta was thrown backwards as well. What exploded wasn¡¯t the rocks however, but the air around the two attacks. The shocking collision caused the air to burst outwards and send Akata and Alabasta flying back.

    Akata¡¯s Astral Obliteration and Alabasta¡¯s Meteor Star Shot clashed against each other sending out blasts of air. But it wasn¡¯t even. The Meteor Star Shot was visibly pushing the Astral Obliteration back bit by bit. Both of them were crumbling but it was easy to see that the Astral Obliteration was being destroyed faster than the Meteor Star Shot.

    Akata was sent flying back but after tumbling a few meters he came to a stop. His clothes were even more torn now and blood could be seen oozing from his mouth. However, he wasn¡¯t focused on that, he was looking straight at the clash. When he saw that his Astral Obliteration attack was being pushed back he was surprised.

    ¡°What?! How is his attack so much stronger than mine?¡± It was unbelievable to him that his most powerful attack would get pushed back by someone else. He just didn¡¯t think that it was at all possible.

    Alabasta¡¯s expression was just as shocked as Akata¡¯s was. ¡®He¡¯s able to contend against my attack? I should be able to easily break his attack apart yet it¡¯s able to hold on for a while. Humph. No matter, he¡¯s just a bit stronger than I thought he was.¡¯ Alabasta was sent flying back but he quickly stabilized himself and didn¡¯t fall down. He frowned slightly and then waved his hand. This caused the neon light surrounding the Meteor Star Shot to increase by two times.The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

    The Meteor Star Shot then easily broke through the Astral Obliteration and headed toward Akata. It¡¯s speed was utterly astonishing and so fast that Akata couldn¡¯t even make out if it was headed his way or in the opposite direction. But he got a very bad feeling from it.

    ¡®I can¡¯t escape this attack.¡¯ he thought to himself. Akata¡¯s pupils constricted heavily as he first thought to defend himself. He rotated his red and gold runes furiously as well as the full power of his mortal and plant cultivation base. He held out his hand as his scythe appeared. He pointed it out in front of him and swiped ahead with an attack.

    Guillotine Slice! It slashed forward producing black scythe-light that raced forward to meet the Meteor Star Shot head on in a collision. It aimed to split it in half thus dispersing its power greatly. Akata put his full power into that attack. The black scythe-light seemed as if it was able to slice through anything.

    The black scythe-light hurriedly came into contact with the Meteor Star Shot and the resulting clash made Alabasta¡¯s attack tremble vigorously. The neon light that surrounded it began to dim severely and its speed and pressure decreased immensely. But that was all, the scythe-light disintegrated and wasn¡¯t able to break the Meteor Star Shot apart. It continued on in shocking fashion towards Akata.

    ¡°A futile attempt to stop my attack. Not even those at the Great Circle are able to stop it so easily. Humph. You can even ask Tabet there.¡± Alabasta gave a slight grin as he spoke to Akata. ¡°Ha. No need to defend either, this will annihilate you either way.¡± He said savagely.

    ¡®How can I get out of this. I¡¯ve used all of my trump cards yet I¡¯m unable to beat him. Is he really at the 10th Grade? Think¡­ think!¡¯ For Akata, things seemed to be going in slow motion in his eyes. He put his scythe away and held his arms out in front of his chest. He didn¡¯t want his scythe to be destroyed in case he survived this. ¡®He¡¯s trying to kill me.¡¯ Akata thought to himself.

    ¡°Interesting, this attack is definitely enough to kill you, just barely however. But I can¡¯t let you die right now.¡± Noluck said calmly. ¡°Can you shine that golden light as bright as you can? Make it so that nobody can see you.¡±

    ¡°Uhh¡­ I guess I can do that.¡± Akata replied somewhat frantically and also confused. He rotated his gold rune vigorously as a boundlessly bright light showed off of him. Usually this golden light would be a result of Akata just using the power of his golden rune, but this time he was solely focusing on producing this golden light. Thus, when people looked at this light, it was as if they were looking at the sun itself.

    ¡°What a bright light!¡±

    ¡°What is this divine ability he¡¯s unleashing?¡±

    ¡°This is very interesting.¡±

    The light surrounding Akata diverted the crowd¡¯s attention. It made them focus on what that light was instead of focusing on what Akata was actually doing under that light. However, even if they wanted to know, they couldn¡¯t because they wouldn¡¯t be able to see under that light. Every cell in Akata¡¯s body emitted a golden luster of light that illuminated the whole arena.

    The Meteor Star Shot closed in on Akata quickly. Almost as soon as that boundless golden light showed out it was upon Akata. Akata didn¡¯t know what Noluck had planned but now, he didn¡¯t have any choice but to trust him. He inhaled a sharp breath and held it.

    All of a sudden, Akata felt his cultivation base power increasing at a rapid rate. It wasn¡¯t his cultivation base itself increasing, as he was still at the 7th Grade of the Mortal and Seed Rank, but his battle prowess. This battle prowess felt foreign to him yet also familiar.

    ¡°I can only give you a bit of power for a short amount of time. Don¡¯t get used to this. Now crush that attack heading toward you.¡± Noluck said, sounding somewhat tired and drained.

    Akata was now filled with the feeling of overwhelming power and strength. His eyes showed with a golden gleam as he extended his hand out in front of him. This was a simple gesture but it made Akata feel as if utter power was coursing through his veins. He made a slow closing gesture with his hand turning it into a fist. This caused Alabasta¡¯s attack to slow to a stop and tremble. It then shook violently and started to crumble piece by piece.

    Akata stood there with his fist in the air watching as the attack crumbled, his eyes wide with astonishment. ¡®Third Elder told me that retreating from a fight is alright. But I don¡¯t ever want to do that. This kind of power will make it so that I won¡¯t ever have to retreat or cower in the face of power. But this isn¡¯t my own power¡­ I need to hurry and get stronger so that I can keep this kind of power for all time.¡¯ Akata thought to himself as he crushed the Meteor Star Shot.

    ¡®I don¡¯t know what level this power is at, but I do know I don¡¯t want to rely on it anymore.¡¯ He quietly mused.

 Chapter 92: Outer Element of Time Appears

    ¡°WHAAT?!¡± Alabasta couldn¡¯t believe what he had just witnessed. He had clearly been dominating the match and his Meteor Star Shot was definitely enough to end the match and destroy Akata, but it had literally been crushed by him. Akata couldn¡¯t even stand up to his might before and now, after he had used all of his trump cards, he was able to produce enough strength to destroy his Meteor Star Shot?

    ¡°Just what did he do? That golden light obviously had something to do with it but I couldn¡¯t tell exactly what. From my perspective it was as if that light didn¡¯t do anything, almost as if it was just ordinary light that was super bright. Bt clearly it brought him a sudden increase in power.¡± Alabasta looked calm on the outside but inside he was actually a bit shaken.

    He wasn¡¯t the only one that was at a loss for what happened. Many of the older generation had suspicions of their own as well. They could sense that the golden light radiating from Akata didn¡¯t hold any kind of power but what they saw happen in front of them proved otherwise. It was conflicting to their knowledge and made them want to get closer to Akata to find out.

    ¡°Maybe this is a technique that mortals have come up with?¡±

    ¡°Do all mortals have this ability?¡±

    ¡°He was able to increase his strength far above the level he had showed so far¡­ This technique is utterly terrifying.¡±

    ¡°If I could use such a technique I would be able to become stronger by leaps and bounds.¡±

    Many thoughts and conversations arose amongst the crowd. Some just had the basic curiosity about what Akata did, others had much more evil plans in their heads. Either way, all of them were intrigued to say the least.

    The sudden burst of power left Akata feeling weak and timid. Even though it wasn¡¯t his own power he felt as if he had used it. His body wasn¡¯t able to comprehend the amount of power that had just blasted through it. It was a totally new sensation for it and Akata.

    Akata took in a deep breath and slowly slumped to the ground. The effects of the increased battle prowess were wearing off and he was now feeling very much so fatigued. He took in a couple deep breaths and forced himself to stand straight back up. His face was pale and he was gasping for air. He clearly looked as if he was exhausted. This exhaustion ,however, cast aside any suspicion that the older generation had about Akata¡¯s ¡®divine ability¡¯. This was because they could now tell that Akata had used a powerful ability and that there were repercussions for it.

    However, even though Akata forced himself to stand straight, he wasn¡¯t able to stop his senses from becoming muddled. Even his nature sense was losing focus, and this is what he used to see. If it went away then he wouldn¡¯t be able to do anything anymore.

    Alabasta looked on with wide eyes but then immediately focused them on Akata. Although he was astonished, he was still a veteran fighter and therefore recovered rather quickly. He waved his hand in the air as he caused a neon light to shine out. He then threw this neon light out toward Akata. Within this neon light was another rock that started to glow brighter and brighter.

    ¡®He actually casted another Meteor Star Shot?! Not good! Akata definitely won¡¯t be able to withstand this one.¡¯ Tabet thought to himself. In fact he wasn¡¯t wrong in the slightest. Without Noluck¡¯s help, Akata wouldn¡¯t have even been able to withstand the last one, to say nothing of this new approaching one.If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

    ¡°HEY! Get up faster he just casted the skill again! Urgh! To think he is so battle tested at such a young age. This is only a light duel yet he fights so seriously. Tsk. I¡¯m sure he aims to kill you here since he is going this far.¡± Noluck said to Akata. But there was nothing he could do. He couldn¡¯t control Akata¡¯s body after all and therefore he could only try to arouse him.

    Akata¡¯s senses were fading away at a fast rate and therefore he was only able to make out a bit of what Noluck was saying. But it wasn¡¯t enough to get any kind of clear message. With his remaining stable nature sense, Akata felt an energy approaching him. It felt the same as the energy before but now it was much more overbearing due to him being in a weakened state.

    The pressure from this new Meteor Star Shot caused Akata to kneel down on the ground. He looked up in the direction where he felt the energy was coming from. ¡®How is he so strong? Just what makes him so strong at his low cultivation base? Could it be because of his beast race or is it something different?¡¯ Right now, Akata wasn¡¯t thinking about the harm that was about to be inflicted upon his body but was instead focused on how strong Alabasta was.

    ¡®Hehe. I¡¯ll definitely reach his height if I don¡¯t die from this.¡¯ A smile ran across Akata¡¯s face. He could tell that Noluck wasn¡¯t able to give him any more power otherwise he would¡¯ve been done so already. That¡¯s why Akata accepted his fate and prepared himself to take on this attack. He rotated both his cultivation bases as best he could to withstand as much of the attack as possible.

    Bang!

    The Meteor Star Shot slammed straight into tens of wooden branches. Passing by them quickly but obviously moving slower and losing much of its power. Tabet suddenly appeared in front of Akata and waved his hand causing an orange and green rune to appear in front of him. The Inner Elements of Fire and Wood mixed together. The two runes merged together and caused a striking pressure to emanate out. The merged rune flew forward at top speed quickly making its way to in front of the Meteor Star Shot.

    ¡°Cindering Forest.¡± Tabet spoke calmly as he balled his hand into a fist. This simple motion caused the orange-green rune to tremble uncontrollably and burst apart into many orange-green motes of light. These motes of light fell to the ground and sprouted orange trees in the blink of an eye. The trees entangled the Meteor Star Shot and brought it to a stop midair. Not only that, but then the Meteor Star Shot started to¡­ melt away!

    The trees weren¡¯t on fire but they clearly exuded a searing heat that caused anything that it came into contact with to experience enough heat to actually burn so hot that it would melt away. The sight was utterly shocking. The Meteor Star Shot, which was said to be one of the supreme attacks within the Docile Rank for any beast was stopped with a wave of a hand from Tabet. This clearly demonstrated the difference in power between the two.

    Alabasta¡¯s eyes went wide. They were even wider than when Akata stopped his attack earlier. ¡°Since when did you become this strong Tabet? Hehe it seems you have some strength to you excellent. Let me be the first to test it out.¡± In the past they were evenly matched in strength even though he had the slightly lower cultivation base, but now, it was clear to say that Tabet was much stronger than he was.

    Alabasta raised his palm in the air and his body started to emit a wild neon glow. Neon light started to form above his palm and it became so bright that the weaker beasts had to look away. The light grew smaller and smaller until it looked like a speck of dust. Then another bright light sprang up beside it and did the same. Then another one. In total three small bright lights floated above Alabasta¡¯s palm. All of this happened in less than a breath of time. A savage smile flitted across Alabasta¡¯s face. ¡°Take my attack! Starsun Dance!¡± He yelled and threw his hand forward in Tabet¡¯s direction. By now he had completely forgot about Akata.

    ¡°Humph.¡± Tabet gave a cold snort and glared meaningfully at Alabasta. He raised his palm toward the direction of the approaching attack. A soft sparkling rune appeared that caught the attention of the everyone. There was nothing they could make out about it besides the fact that it sparkled. ¡°In truth¡­ I¡¯m not that skilled in the elements of fire, illusions, or even wood. I just so happened to have this skill that lets me understand them faster. I¡¯ve never even gone all out with you before. So how about you¡­ take my attack!¡±

    The sparkling rune suddenly blasted out an unbelievable power that made everyone¡¯s faces fall. It was a power that most didn¡¯t even understand or know about. But the one¡¯s that did felt their minds reeling and shock battered them.

    ¡°An¡­ An Outer Element! He can control an Outer Element!¡±

    ¡°Which element is this?¡±

    ¡°From the fluctuations coming off of it, it has to be the Outer Element of Time!¡±

    Tabet didn¡¯t listen to any of this as he swiped his hand forward to the incoming attack. This sent the sparkling rune toward the three balls of neon light. ¡°Reverse. Forward.¡± He spoke only two words but this caused a truly shocking scene to occur. The crowd practically jumped to their feet in astonishment and confusion.

 Chapter 93: Tabetâ€™s True Power

    ¡°Reverse. Forward.¡± These simple two words were spoken in a calm voice, but when Alabasta heard them he felt truly threatened. He watched as the sparkling rune that gave off the fluctuations of time manipulation rushed forth toward his three balls of neon light.

    The three balls of neon light spun harmoniously around each other as if they were dancing. They were super bright and many of the onlookers had to look away from them. Even though the specks of light were small they had condensed power within them that made them really destructive. The lights rushed forward to Tabet in an attempt to crush him. They spun faster and faster around each other and with each revolution they became faster and the dense energy around them became stronger.

    This was the Starsun Dance. It was an attack that condensed the energy of the stars and sun into itself to create shocking pressure that was capable of crushing hills in the blink of an eye. It was an ability that was even stronger than the Meteor Star Shot. When more motes of light were added then the stronger it would become. It was said that the creator of this ability was capable of crushing an entire nation under this attack. It was an ability that was only passed down to the main bloodline of the Meteor Wolf Star Tribe.

    This was an attack that even though it looked casual, required the full focus of its caster to implement. Alabasta was actually bedraggled after using this attack but on the surface he definitely didn¡¯t show it. Three neon lights were his limit, if he could do more he would end up injuring his own body.

    Normally when Alabasta cast this attack he would feel complete confidence in it. Even if he faced an Elder of his own tribe he wouldn¡¯t feel the least bit frightened in taking them on with this attack. But when faced against Tabet¡¯s sparkling rune, he felt despair, something that had never happened to him before when using this attack.

    ¡®So what if he can use an Outer Element. It doesn¡¯t matter in the face of my attack. It¡¯s not like he is that experienced in using an Outer Element anyways.¡¯ This is what Alabasta thought to console himself a bit. But even then it didn¡¯t ease him in the slightest.

    About halfway the sparkling rune was upon the Starsun Dance. The sparkling rune expanded out and surrounded the area the neon lights were in, in a kind of sparkling domain. Time was heavily warped within this domain and under the complete control of Tabet.

    As with his words, the Starsun Dance slowed to a complete stop and then began to move in reverse. They technically didn¡¯t change directions but was reversing time, as they moved back their power was lessening and they were going dimmer. However, this was a normal time attack that caused any attack to flow backwards in time as if it hadn¡¯t been casted. Tabet on the other hand had something else in mind.

    Also with his wishes the Starsun Dance started ¡®moving forward¡¯. They weren¡¯t going back toward Tabet but instead was gaining the power that it had been gathering as if it were going forward in time to attack him. Normally this would be done by just changing the direction of the attack with the Outer Element of Space but Tabet was capable of doing this with time. Obviously, his skill with the Outer Element of Time was at a level that was incomprehensible by most. It could also be said that his skill was even greater than Priest Bambe¡¯s.

    Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

    The sparkling domain glittered brightly as it made the Starsun Dance change directions and head toward Alabasta. However, even after he did this he wasn¡¯t done pressing his attack. Tabet waved his hand causing a silver and green rune to appear in the air in front of him and merge together. These were the Inner Elements of Light and Wood and they formed a green sun in the sky. The green sun shone green light on everything.

    Tabet pointed at the spot that Alabasta was standing at and soon the green light that was radiating from the sun clustered around his position. All of a sudden, green branches showed up around Alabasta and trapped him within the location he was in. He didn¡¯t have anywhere to retreat to.

    Alabasta¡¯s eyes went wide with disbelief. The level of skill and power Tabet was displaying was far beyond what he was used to. In fact, it was much more than what he could handle. He was so surprised that he nearly forgot to defend himself. ¡°Humph.¡± He let out a loud roar then transformed into the shape of a two meter long wolf. The wolf had astral fur that looked like the image of the starry sky. His eyes were a bright neon as well as his claws.

    As soon as he transformed into his original form neon light started to radiate off of him. It was a boundless neon light that covered over everything and radiated a shocking pressure throughout the arena. Alabasta looked on with savage eyes at the incoming attacks. ¡°Hehe not enough.¡± Alabasta swiped his claws forward as a huge neon sun showed above him. The neon sun shot out devastating rays of light that came crashing down like shooting stars. ¡°Starry Rain.¡±

    Tabet looked calmly at the incoming rays of light and didn¡¯t act to do anything. The Starsun Dance that was cast out slammed into the neon sun and made it trembled vigorously. The neon sun dimmed down and became slightly weaker. It was made with Alabasta¡¯s full power so it was reasonable.

    ¡°HAHA! You don¡¯t have the power to contend with me!¡± Alabasta screamed out. However, Tabet just simply looked at the neon sun hanging over Alabasta. The green sun over his own head showed brighter and soon silver rings appeared around it. The silver rings straightened out and shot out toward the neon sun and surrounded it. The silver rings were now around the neon sun. The silver rings emitted a soft green glow and silver branches shot out to encompass the neon sun. The branches stabbed into the neon sun and also trapped it so that no more rays of light could shoot out.

    ¡°Wha¡­ What is this ability? It¡¯s able to defend and attack in one? There had to be tremendous insights that went into coming up with this.¡± Alabasta was shocked upon seeing this green sun that Tabet unleashed. He watched as his own sun was shattered and utterly destroyed by the silver branches.

    ¡®Humph. I guess my Eversun Woodlight ability can use a bit more work. My branches should¡¯ve been able to move much faster than they had been.¡¯ Tabet mused to himself. He paid no more attention to Alabasta as he turned his head toward Akata who was on the ground barely conscious.

    Akata was laying on the ground and his senses were extremely fuzzy and unclear. He wasn¡¯t able to watch any of the battle that Tabet and Alabasta were having. He was barely able to make out the pressure that the attacks they let out unleashed. When Tabet looked at him he was gasping for air and his mind was cloudy.

    Tabet looked very depressed at the moment. He picked Akata up and immediately rushed to his palace to let Akata rest in peace. He didn¡¯t even cast a glance back at Alabasta who was still trapped within the the branches of his Eversun Woodlight ability.

    ¡°Humph. Just going to leave me here? This isn¡¯t over. You might have grown stronger in this bit of time and learned how to use an Outer Element but that doesn¡¯t mean you¡¯ll stay above me forever.¡± A savage gleam appeared within Alabasta¡¯s eyes as he silently murmured to himself. He then laid down and started to meditate within the branches that trapped him.

    Tabet didn¡¯t hear any of this but even if he did, he wouldn¡¯t pay it any attention at all and proceed along with what he was doing. In fact, he completely forgot about Alabasta at the moment.

    Pina looked at all of this happen and shook her head. ¡®Who would have thought that he would surpass us by this much. No wonder the Scarlet Tigers were cast out of the mainland. They had too much potential and could shake the power balance. They¡¯re just like the Star Wolves but¡­ it is clear that the Star Wolves are on a bit of a lower level. Runes are simply too powerful of a force compared to what beasts are given to use.¡¯ With that she exited out of the arena and went to report back to her own tribe.

    Gorgon was also nearby and watched the battle in secret. He didn¡¯t speak any words but simply looked on and left. Although it was hard to notice, his aura had become a bit stronger and more refined.

 Chapter 94: Holy Beast Tribes

    Time passed and the uproar from the crowd had not subsided. When the match between Tabet and Alabasta was underway it was one shocking scene after the other. The level of power they both displayed was shocking considering their cultivation levels. Alabasta was only at the 10th Grade but he could unleash power that was on the level of someone at the Great Circle. Tabet was at the Great Circle and his battle prowess could be seen as being at the threshold of the Beast Rank. And he was still growing much more powerful. His potential could be considered limitless.

    ¡°Ahaha! Now THAT is our Young Lord Tabet!¡±

    ¡°Our Lords will bring our tribe and this land to great heights!¡±

    As the buzz of conversation went on, numerous members of the Scarlet Rune Tribe became enlivened. They were in a jubilant mood and they immediately rushed around the Great Aka Tribe spreading the joyous news. Of course, word spread quickly not just about Tabet and Alabasta¡¯s match but also the other matches that went on. Talk about the level of skill that Akata was able to display while only at the 7th Grade was spread as well. This news reached the ears of not only the common members of the Great Aka Tribe but the higher ranked members as well.

    Flying Dragon Snake Pavilion

    ¡°Hmm¡­ so Pina lost against a mortal at the 7th Grade of the Mortal Rank then? It can¡¯t be that she wasn¡¯t giving it her all, but it must have been that this mortal was just too outstanding of a figure. He even beat Gorgon, huh? I must meet this mortal. What was his name again?¡±

    A ten meter long snake with wings and small front legs spoke. This snake had green wings and black scales. It also had a green beard running from its head down to the ground. This creature clearly had some age to it and also had an intense pressure that it was obviously holding back.

    Below this Wyrm was another snake with wings but this one didn¡¯t have any legs. It was only six meters long and was completely black in color. However, this Wyrm was at the 3rd Grade of the Beast Rank. it looked up at the figure above him with reverence and pride. He respectively said, ¡°Dragon Emperor, this mortal is called Akata.¡±

    ¡°Akata eh¡­ interesting! Bring him to me.¡± The Dragon Emperor called out. ¡°And tell Pina to come here as well.¡± His voice was calm but carried much power behind it. He was the expert and leader of the Flying Dragon Snake Tribe, the current Dragon Emperor, Hymna. His strength could be said to be unrivalled at the 3rd Grade of the Temporal Rank and the only one who could match him was Great Lord Taple. He was the oldest member of the Great Aka Tribe and had much experience. Because of his strength his tribe was considered one of the three Holy Beast Tribes.

    ¡°Yes Dragon Emperor!¡± The beast below him assented and hurriedly rushed to do his task. Dragon Emperor Hymna simply nodded his head and laid there unmoving. A strange gleam could be seen in his eyes but only he knew what he was thinking.

    Earthen Beast Jungle Lake

    A huge Gatorape sat in a tree looking down at a few others. This Gatorape was a fully 10 meters tall and was burly beyond compare. His alligator skin looked dark and extremely tough. His eyes were sharp and proud as if nothing could shake him. All of the Gatorapes below him looked on with awe-inspiring eyes except one who just looked respectful.The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

    ¡°Grandfather¡­ he was just¡­ too special. I thought that I had the match in my favor but in the end he got the better of me. I don¡¯t even know how it happened. He was only at the 7th Grade but was able to do what takes someone at the Half-step of the Beast Rank to do.¡± Gorgon sighed and told the Gatorape that was sitting in the tree.

    That Gatorape simply looked at him with warm yet harsh eyes. It was as if his gaze was conflicted. It didn¡¯t whether to be disappointed or angry. Finally with a sigh he spoke.

    ¡°Bring that Akata to me.¡± He simply said. He didn¡¯t speak slow or harsh or anything. It was just a bland sentence with no emotion or even thought put into it. But at these words everyone below him started to listen closely and not dare to make a sound.

    After he finished speaking one Gatorape stepped up and said extremely respectfully. ¡°I will do as you wish Heaven Beast Monarch Goliath.¡± As the Gatorape finished speaking he immediately departed in search for Akata. He wouldn¡¯t come back until he completed this task.

    Heaven Beast Monarch Goliath turned his head to looked at Gorgon. Even though he was at the 2nd Grade of the Temporal Rank, none of that pressure roiled onto Gorgon. This was the leader of the Earthen Beast Tribe and although he was the weakest compared to the other Temporal Ranked beasts, his pride and strength made him their equal.

    When his gaze came across Gorgon he simply sighed. ¡°Gorgon¡­ grandchild. You need more training. You¡¯re falling behind the other Gifted Beasts. At this rate you may end up in last place just like me. I may not make any more progress but you certainly can. I¡¯m going to send you out to adventure and gain some experience. Only then will you make substantial progress. Be ready in a week.¡± Heaven Beast Monarch Goliath said without emotion. Although it was said without emotion, his eyes seemed to carry warmth in them.

    Meteor Star Palace

    There was an 8 meter long wolf with astral fur. This fur, however, was white with black spot instead of black with white spots. It laid to the side with its eyes closed. If it wasn¡¯t for the obvious youth in front of it waiting for an answer with anticipation, anybody would¡¯ve thought this wolf was sleeping. After a bit of time the wolf opened its eyes and they showed with a bright neon light that looked as if it could pierce through the starry sky.

    ¡°No.¡± Was the simple reply to the young wolf in front of it. This one word held dominating power behind it and made the wolf in front of it tense up. However, there was also a gentleness within the word as well.

    ¡°But grandmother why?¡± Alabasta asked in confusion and a hint of nervousness. This was the first time he had actually talked back to his grandmother before. It made him frightened to just think about talking back but this time he couldn¡¯t hold himself back.

    Her eyes were sharp and they seemed to look through Alabasta¡¯s very soul. ¡°Simple. There¡¯s no way you can beat Tabet right now. As of this moment he is out of your range until you can increase your cultivation base. That is the only thing holding you back right now. What you should be more interested in is that Akata boy.¡± She spoke much more calmly with the last sentence.

    ¡°Akata? Why him?¡± Alabasta asked with disdain as he was obviously disinterested with him.

    ¡°Why? He is much more talented than you are.¡± She looked at Alabasta to see the shock and humiliation wash over his face. Soon afterwards could be seen a hint of anger. ¡°He is much more talented than you because even though you are at the 10th Grade and able to match up to the Great Circle, he is at the 7th Grade and can surpass the 10th Grade. Not only that but he is a mortal as well.¡± A snort came out her mouth after this. ¡°To think utter trash of a mortal can compete with us beasts. I want him destroyed in body and soul.¡±

    She spoke out in a louder voice and said, ¡°Rein! I want you to bring that mortal to me this instant! He is being guarded by the Scarlet Tigers so be careful.¡± Her words were cold and merciless.

    Another wolf with astral fur and saber teeth appeared out of nowhere. This astral fur was the regular black with white spots. It spoke in a deep calm voice, ¡°Yes Star Sovereign Allica.¡± The wolf named Rein simply and respectfully said as it soon vanished afterwards.

    Star Sovereign Allica was the third strongest of the Temporal Ranked beasts and also the only female. Her strength was at the 2nd Grade of the Temporal Rank but with her innate abilities she could fully compete with the 3rd Grade. Her grandson, Alabasta, was the second strongest of the Gifted Beasts but he was just too cold and distant from others. She wished for him to be strong but also to be with others.

    These were the three Holy Beast Tribes and their leaders. Dragon Emperor Hymna of the Flying Dragon Snake Tribe, Heaven Beast Monarch Goliath of the Earthen Beast Tribe, and Star Sovereign Allica of the Meteor Wolf Star Tribe. Each of these figures could shake the world by themselves, but now they all wanted one thing¡­ Akata.

 Chapter 95: Powerful Gathering

    In a dome shaped palace in the center of the Great Aka Tribe. Akata laid in a room unconscious. The battle he had been in was a hard one and the energy he had used up was a substantial amount. Tabet wasn¡¯t there by him but had left due to his father and grandfather calling him.

    The three of them were located in a different part of the palace and were discussing the events that had just transpired.

    ¡°Ahh! So you¡¯re able to easily suppress that Alabasta kid now! Hahaha! Excellent excellent. Once you break through to the Beast Rank you will be a top figure amongst beasts. You should start making preparations to go out and adventure and gain some real experience. Our Great Aka Tribe is still growing but even in this bit of time we have been flourishing greatly.¡± Lord Tafei said beaming with happiness and his voice obviously containing pride.

    ¡°You said Akata was able to beat two of the Gifted Beasts of our tribe. Interesting. All of the Gifted Beasts are prodigies when it comes to cultivation, talent, and skill. To think that, while at the 7th Grade, he was able to contend with them.¡± Great Lord Taple spoke curiously. ¡°When he awakes bring him to me.¡±

    When he finished his sentence, a guard came into the room and respectfully said. ¡°Golden Runic Lord, Scarlet Runic Lord, and Young Runic Lord.¡± He said these three names with utmost respect and caution. He waited until one of them nodded their head so that he could speak further. ¡°The Three Holy Tribes wish to see Akata. They all want Akata to make an appearance before them and have requested that you let him go. These requests were given by the Heaven Beast Monarch, the Dragon Emperor, and the Star Sovereign.¡± The guard respectfully stated.

    Great Lord Taple simply snorted. ¡°They wish to see Akata? They probably wish to dissect him, especially Allica. It would be one thing if one of them asked for him but all three did at the same time. It would be hard to reject them all even if I am the leader of the Great Aka Tribe. Hmm¡­ Tell them that I will hold an audience with them tomorrow and that Akata will be there. It will be at my palace and if they want to meet him they have to come here.¡± Great Lord Taple said as he waved his paw out to the guard.

    ¡°As you wish Golden Runic Lord.¡± Said the guard as he then turned to leave. The names Golden Runic Lord, Scarlet Runic Lord, and Young Runic Lord were the names given to the leaders of the Scarlet Runic Tribe. Golden Runic Lord was the name that held the most power in the island. It brought pressure to many individuals and gave others the sense of awe and nervousness. The room was completely silent as he exited the room. It wasn¡¯t until he was out that they began to converse again.

    ¡°Are you sure about this father? Some of these people must have something planned to harm Akata. If all three of them wish to harm him, there will be little we can do against them all. Although he is only one figure, he did beat two of the Gifted Beasts and the other is apart of a tribe that hates mortals. This could be troublesome.¡± Scarlet Runic Lord Tafei asked with caution.

    ¡°There¡¯s no need to worry. Akata will be under my protection for the duration of the gathering. If I feel that the situation becomes unsafe for him then I will immediately call the gathering off and hold the others off while I let Akata escape. Given his strength and our strength nobody will be able to touch him. Of course, if it does come to that, we won¡¯t resort to slaughtering our people, just holding them back.¡± Golden Runic Lord Taple talked slowly and calmly. Every word he spoke was like a message from a transcendent figure.Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on.

    However, in his mind there was extreme caution. He definitely didn¡¯t want the worst possible situation to occur. He could only sigh inwardly.

    Akata laid in a room by himself completely oblivious to what was being planned around him. His eyes suddenly twitched as he slowly opened his eyes. His nature sense was still muddled and he couldn¡¯t sense his surroundings very well so he didn¡¯t know exactly where he was right now. His body was slowly gaining its strength back but his mind was surprisingly clear at the moment.

    ¡®Those battles taught me a lot about what I need to improve on. Even though I was able to win against that Gatorape and that Wyrm, when it comes to battle tactics they have me beat completely. And when it comes to that Starwolf¡­ there¡¯s no need to mention that he had me beat in everything. Whether it was cultivation base, insights, skills, battle prowess, fighting tactics, he completely outclassed me. Even if I had both of my arms I wouldn¡¯t have been able to stand up against him any better than I had.¡± Akata silently mused to himself.

    ¡°So you¡¯re finally awake, huh? Tsk. If it wasn¡¯t for that Scarlet Tiger helping you out back there you definitely would¡¯ve been seriously injured if not dead right now. Humph. Your luck is simply too strong.¡± Noluck said as he spoke to Akata. ¡°If you are to survive long enough to help me revive myself then you will have to get much stronger than you are now. Most of the techniques I have at my disposal are too strong for you to use right now and some are outright incompatible for mortals.¡± At this thought Noluck became silent as if he were mulling over something.

    ¡°But you do have a plant cultivation base. And considering that you have such an advanced level of nature energy you just might be able to use some of my techniques. Let¡¯s try it then.¡± Noluck still looked like a green mist in Akata¡¯s dantion region but if he was clear you would be able to see the bright gleam in his eyes. He seemingly waved his hand and a green light shot out of the dantion region as it made its way to Akata¡¯s head.

    Akata suddenly felt a ton of information flood into his mind. ¡°I¡¯m going to give you a technique that uses your nature energy but as of this moment your skill in it is low. So I¡¯m going to transmit some techniques to you that you can use to increase your level and skill in it.¡± Noluck stated blandly but expectantly.

    ¡°Increase my level of nature energy? What do you mean by that?¡± Akata sounded very confused and it was for good reason as he had no idea what Noluck was talking about.

    ¡°You don¡¯t even know about levels?¡± Noluck asked with disbelief. It was as if this was unheard of before. ¡°All techniques are divided into levels. These levels are called gods. So, if you just started to train in nature energy then you should be at the 1st level of naturegod. There¡¯s the naturegod, swordgod, spacegod, mentalgod, etc. Considering how adept you are at nature energy you should at least be at the 1st level of naturegod.¡± Noluck said carefully. He wanted Akata to know exactly what his strength was.

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure about the levels of other things but I am knowledgeable on naturegod levels considering I¡¯m a plant cultivator. Plants have the most affinity toward nature with beasts being the second most capable in it. Since you pursue the skill of the scythe you should find some information regarding scythegod levels. Although I¡¯m sure you¡¯re more talented in naturegod.¡± Noluck didn¡¯t mind putting his input in while talking to Akata.

    Akata listened closely and nodded his head. ¡°Then these techniques that you transmitted to me will help increase my level?¡±

    ¡°Not directly. These techniques will help you to gain more insight into nature and with more insights you will naturally increase your naturegod level. Most formidable people are at the 4th naturegod level. Once you reach the 2nd naturegod level then you can use nature to attack for you.¡± Noluck sounded enthusiastic when talking about this.

    Akata nodded his head and then searched through his memories for the transmitted information. He immediately found the techniques and arts related to nature energy. One technique involved movement and Akata instantly became excited. He was in desperate need of a new movement skill as his Shadowfeet skill was a bit lacking. He then began to study it along with the others. That was how he passed his time. Soon a day passed by.

 Chapter 96: Powerful Gathering (2)

    After a full day of reviewing and gaining insights into the various nature energy arts and techniques that Noluck had transmitted him, Akata became much more proficient with his use of it. Although it would take a bit of time to actually improve greatly, the applications and foundations he found for it were of great use. He spent most of that day focusing on the movement skill and therefore gained the most from that.

    ¡®This nature movement skill, Lunarsun Steps, has three different levels to it. The Outer, Inner, and Core levels. The Outer level can be used by people of the First Rank, the Inner level can be used by the Second Rank, and the Core level can be trained in by people of the Third Rank. I¡¯m not even able to understand how this movement skill works for the Core level and I can only somewhat understand how it works for the Inner level.¡¯ Akata was reviewing how the movement skill was divided to himself.

    ¡®It doesn¡¯t matter though, as the Outer level is much more faster and profound than the Shadowfeet technique. The Shadowfeet technique gets faster the darker the place you use it in, but the Lunarsun Steps can exceed the Shadowfeet technique¡¯s top speed even in bright daylight. While the Shadowfeet technique uses shadows as the basis of speed, the Lunarsun Steps uses the light of the sun and moon as the basis.

    But that means the more light that shines on me the faster I go but if I happen to be in a place where there is little or no light than I will be much slower. So how about I mix these two techniques together and combine the best traits of them.¡¯ This was Akata¡¯s aim as he studied this technique. If he could perfectly combine these two techniques together then he wouldn¡¯t have to worry about where he was at when using this skill and he could also improve its speed. ¡®Let¡¯s get started then.¡¯

    ¡°Akata!¡± A voice rang out as soon as Akata was about to begin. Akata opened his eyes and sent his nature sense out to scan his surroundings. His nature sense was fully replenished and back in top shape. After he had spent a full day looking over the various nature energy manuals and techniques it had even grown a bit stronger. Although it was invisible, if one could see his nature sense, one would notice a tiny amount of wisps flowing throughout his nature sense range. These wisps made it so that his nature sense could spread out further, move faster, and pick up more details regarding his surroundings.

    From his quick scan of his surroundings, Akata picked up on a figure of a scarlet tiger standing in the doorway. From the energy, aura, height, weight, breathing rate, and other factors, Akata was able to conclude that this figure was familiar to him. Akata stood up and greeted the figure in the doorway. ¡°Lord Tafei.¡± He said respectfully while bowing.

    ¡°Mn.¡± Lord Tafei greeted with a warm smile. ¡°Please call me Scarlet Runic Lord as that is what all the other beasts of this land call me. Ahh¡­ I don¡¯t know who¡¯s idea it was to get the beasts of this land to come up with exalted names for us great clans. Anyways, I have come to escort you to a gathering that has been planned yesterday. I would have told you when you woke up but you seemed to be in the middle of gaining some enlightenment. I¡¯ll tell you more about the gathering as we walk there.¡± Scarlet Runic Lord Tafei said as he gestured Akata to come.

    Akata didn¡¯t reject and immediately got up to follow. This meeting had to be special as he was requested to go to it. Otherwise, he would¡¯ve been able to finish gaining his enlightenment. Scarlet Runic Lord Tafei walked Akata to the gathering place and told Akata all about what had happened and the purpose of this gathering.

    ¡°So basically because I was able to go against the top geniuses of the beasts I was seen as a threat?¡± Akata asked with some minor confusion.Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.

    ¡°Somewhat but not quite. In truth none of the tribes see you as a threat just an enemy because you are a mortal and have strength to rival their geniuses. Think of it as if you mortals had a competition with your top geniuses and one beast was able to beat half of your geniuses. Wouldn¡¯t you view that beast as a strong enemy in the future. And if that beast was able to grow stronger it would prove quite troublesome in the future. That is the case here.¡± Scarlet Runic Lord Tafei said calmly.

    ¡°The Star Wolves, Gatorapes, and the Wyrms especially see you as an enemy. More specifically the Meteor Wolf Star Tribe, the Earthen Beast Tribe, and the Flying Dragon Snake Tribe, the top three tribes under ours, see you as an enemy. They may not want to kill you but they surely have something planned if they wanted to meet with you. Given their status, we couldn''t just outright reject their request. The other tribes however we could reject it easily. Therefore only those three tribes will be about to meet you at this gathering.¡± Scarlet Runic Lord Tafei went silent for a moment.

    This silence made Akata kind of wary as he could sense the deep thought that he was in. After a moment Scarlet Runic Lord Tafei spoke solemnly and much more quieter.

    ¡°I want you to be cautious of the Meteor Wolf Star Tribe however. They are known to be vicious when it comes to mortals, especially the leader right now, Star Sovereign Allica. If the gathering becomes unsafe we will have to get you as far away as possible from this island. That''s just if worse comes to worse however, but still, be careful if them.¡±

    Akata took these words to heart as he had his vigilance peaked now. In the inside he was very cautious but in the outside he looked as cool as a cucumber. Scarlet Runic Lord Tafei took note of this and nodded his head in satisfaction. ¡°Good. Here we are.¡±

    The place of the gathering was still on the grounds of the palace. It was in a large open courtyard that filled with countless runes etched into the walls and floor. It was a beautiful place that had a charming aura to it. Gold could be seen littering the ground as if it were useless. Plants filled the courtyard in a decorative manner and pillars with yellow fire could be seen throughout the place. This was a place that wasn¡¯t accessible to the public or even regular members of the Scarlet Rune Tribe.

    ¡°This is Golden Runic Lord Taple¡¯s private room. Everyone, even me needs permission from him to enter this place. For him to have the gathering here means that he does indeed wish to keep you safe.¡± Scarlet Runic Lord Tafei mentally sent a message to Akata.

    Akata was amazed at the sight that he saw when he entered this place. The first thing he noticed was the sheer amount of gold in this place. Mortals, no matter how rich they were, would have their heart palpitate and their eyes go wide with greed from the amount of gold in this room. But every beast in here paid it no attention whatsoever. This was the difference between the lifestyles of the two races.

    Akata quickly let it pass his mind as he didn¡¯t really know the value of gold. The next thing that caught his attention was the powerful beasts that were in the gathering room. There were two striking pressures that especially caught Akata¡¯s attention. One of them came from a familiar figure, Golden Runic Lord Taple, the other came from a beast he hadn¡¯t met before. But he could conclude that it was the same type of beast as Pina.

    Scarlet Runic Lord Tafei followed Akata¡¯s line of sight and stated, ¡°That is the true leader of the Flying Dragon Snake Tribe, Dragon Emperor Hymna. He has around the same level of strength as my father. He is also the oldest member that is apart of our Great Aka Tribe, around a thousand years old.¡±

    Akata reeled at the sound of that. A thousand years old? He couldn¡¯t even comprehend how long that was, but he definitely knew that it was a long time. The shock that appeared on his face caused Scarlet Runic Lord Tafei to reveal an amused smile.

    ¡°Once beasts reach the Temporal Rank, we can live much much longer. In fact I¡¯m able to live up to half a millennium since I¡¯ve reached the Beast Rank. In the Temporal Rank, some beasts have even been known to live up to two thousand years.¡±

    ¡®I still don¡¯t know why exactly I want to become stronger. But this just gives me more of a reason to. I want to know why getting stronger gives you a longer life, why you¡¯re able to control people or situations with just an appearance, what are the secrets of this universe and who made it? There¡¯s so many things to do and figure out that requires you to become strong.¡¯ Akata silently mused to himself.

    ¡°Go over to where Tabet is for now until the gathering starts. When it does, you¡¯ll get further instructions.¡± Scarlet Runic Lord Tafei stated. He pointed in a direction at where Tabet could be seen looking directly at Akata with a broad smile. Akata smiled back and went in that direction.

 Chapter 97: Powerful Gathering (3)

    Akata made his way over to where Tabet was located. Tabet was smiling widely but he couldn¡¯t hide the fact that he was obviously nervous about something. Akata knew what so he ignored it as he greeted him.

    ¡°Tabet! How are you?¡± Akata said casually.

    ¡°I¡¯m great but more importantly how are you? You were injured after Alabasta went to far right? You must need some more rest. My father told me that you were resting yesterday so I didn¡¯t disturb you yesterday. How are you feeling now?¡± Tabet asked, clearly he was really worried about Akata.

    ¡°I¡¯m good I¡¯m good haha. I just needed some rest that was all. I really didn¡¯t get injured during my fights so some sleep helped me out a lot. I feel much better now.¡± Akata said.

    ¡°Good. It seems as if this gathering was made just for you. All of the beasts wanted to meet you but only the powerful tribes were allowed to. This just shows how important you are.¡± Tabet said slowly and meaningfully. ¡°Listen you have to be careful during this gathering. There may be some dangerous situations going on.¡±

    ¡°Mn. I know.¡± Akata simply nodded his head and answered. It wasn¡¯t that he wasn¡¯t worried about the gathering, it was just that he was already as vigilant as he could be at the moment. He wasn¡¯t even really focused on the conversation he was having with Tabet.

    As he was standing there, Akata was continuously trying to merge his Shadowfeet ability and the Lunarsun Steps movement skill together. Although it was going at a slow rate since he wasn¡¯t in meditation it was still a decent speed for him.

    Tabet and Akata conversed back and forth until a little while later a familiar beast approached them. This was Pina who was one of the Gifted Beasts of this generation. She flew in with an aura of nobility and settled down in front of Tabet. She gave a side glance at Akata and then greeted the both of them.

    ¡°Tabet. Akata.¡± She said calmly before continuing. ¡°It seems that this gathering was made for you, Akata. My Flying Dragon Snake Tribe is really interested in you and it seems like all the other tribes are as well.¡±

    Akata had been hearing this same general line from everyone so he simply answered with a casual nod and smile. ¡°Yeah, you¡¯re right.¡± This reply somewhat displeased Pina so she paid no more attention to Akata as she focused on Tabet.

    ¡°Tabet it looks like you¡¯ve grown in strength by a lot. You definitely deserve the top spot of the Gifted Beasts. You¡¯ll be able to break through to the Beast Rank very soon.¡± Pina praised.

    Tabet looked on and smiled as he said, ¡°Thanks. You strength seems to have improved as well. It won¡¯t be long before you break through as well.¡± Tabet kept the conversation simple and short. He wanted to make sure that nobody that could harm Akata was around.

    Akata could see how Tabet wanted to get away from everyone and was secretly surprised by this. He knew that Tabet was kind but he didn¡¯t know he would go so far as to even distance himself from others just to protect himself.

    Pina sighed inwardly and thanked Tabet before leaving. She went to the other members of her tribe and waited for the gathering to begin.

    A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

    A bit after that the Earthen Beast Tribe arrived at the courtyard, being escorted by members of the Scarlet Rune Tribe. Among this group were other powerful experts that caught Akata¡¯s attention.There were some around the same level of strength as Tabet¡¯s father and one that had the around the level of strength as Tabet¡¯s grandfather.

    Akata secretly took note of these figures and their locations. His nature sense was constantly roving around keeping track of the movements of every beast within the courtyard. The powerful expert on the level of strength Tabet¡¯s grandfather went over to him. There, he greeted him and the Dragon Emperor Hymna.

    The arrival of the Heaven Beast Monarch Goliath caught the attention of many. But another person that also caught the same amount of attention wasn¡¯t Gorgon, but rather his father, Earthen Beast Overlord Gingo. Surprisingly, he was at the 10th Grade of the Beast Rank! Just a hair away from the Great Circle. It wouldn¡¯t be long before he broke through to the Temporal Rank and at that time the Earthen Beast Tribe would be on a whole new level of power.

    Soon after the Gatorapes arrival the Star Wolves appeared. The Star Sovereign walked in like a celestial being with her white astral fur. Her aura immediately catching the attention of the beasts. Next was her son and his wife who were at the 9th and 7th Grades of the Beast Rank respectively. Her son was the Duke Star Alpha. After those two was Young Star Alabasta.

    The leaders of the tribes such as Scarlet Runic Lord Tafei, Duke Star Alpha, Earthen Beast Overlord Gingo, and Dragon King Wuna all congregated together discussing various things. Dragon King Wuna came from the Flying Dragon Snake Tribe and he was at the 9th Grade of the Beast Rank. Amongst them, Scarlet Runic Lord Tafei was the weakest with his strength still being at the 8th Grade.

    The foundations of the tribes who were also known as the true leaders also gathered together. Golden Runic Lord Taple, Star Sovereign Allica, Heaven Beast Monarch Goliath, and Dragon Emperor Hymna stood on an altar above everyone so that they were in the view of all the beasts.

    Akata had paid close attention to all of the beasts that had came in. But paid special attention to the powerful ones. He had come to notice each and every one of them take a look in his direction. All he did was smile in their direction.

    When he smiled at Star Sovereign Allica however, his smile froze and cold sweat formed on his forehead. When his nature sense met with her body, he felt the ice cold killing intent come from her. It seeped down into his bones and made his body stiffen up. He didn¡¯t recover until her gaze left him. Nobody else could feel that killing intent but others took notice of the exchange.

    The first to notice was naturally Golden Runic Lord Taple who was paying close attention to the other true leaders as well. He quickly sent a mental message over to Star Sovereign Allica and asked her to come over. Because of that she stopped paying attention to Akata and looked away from him. In fact, her gaze only lasted for the time it takes a spark to fly yet to Akata it lasted for a long time.

    Akata quickly recovered from his fear and spread his nature sense back out. That gaze had actually shattered apart his nature sense in an instant leaving him completely vulnerable. ¡®Why am I even spreading this out? She was able to effortlessly break it apart with a simple quick look at me. Was she even trying to break it? Is this what the difference in strength can do?¡¯ Even as he thought this he kept spreading it out. It was better to have some kind of protection than none at all.

    The Gifted Beasts gathered together save for Tabet. Young Star Alabasta, Young Beast Heir Gorgon, and Dragon Princess Pina clustered together to talk about whatever. But as they talked they would occasionally cast a glance towards Akata and Tabet. It was hard to tell which one of the two they were looking at however, since they were so close together.

    Tabet sneered and said, ¡°Don¡¯t pay them any attention Akata.¡±

    Akata was silent for a moment before calmly speaking. ¡°Tabet¡­ it¡¯s best if you don¡¯t distance yourself too much from these beasts. They are apart of your tribe and you will have to spend your days with them in the future. I appreciate what you¡¯re doing but also consider the repercussions.¡±

    Tabet looked on with wide eyes and a shocked expression. He couldn¡¯t disagree with what Akata was saying and knew where he was coming from with his words. He inwardly sighed and and said, ¡°I know¡­ I won¡¯t go too far, just enough to make sure that you are alright.¡±

    Akata nodded his head and smiled. Soon five minutes passed by and that was when Golden Runic Lord Taple spoke up with a booming voice that rocked the whole island.

    ¡°It is time for the gathering to start. Of course we will do more than just greet each other, we will also have ourselves a little competition that Akata will also participate in. I won¡¯t say what that competition is but for now let us enjoy ourselves.¡± It was only then that the various beasts started to congregate together to get to know each other.

    Although it was only four different beast races, these were the top four beast races of the whole Great Aka Tribe. Once they grew closer it would mean that the tribe as a whole would become much more powerful. This gathering would resolve differences between the top beast races and also solidify their bond.

    The leaders of the four tribes even intermingled among the beasts. Only the foundations, aka the true leaders, stayed in their own group undisturbed by the various beasts. Akata even talked Tabet into going around and talk with other beasts. Of course he was only able to persuade him by saying that he would be there with him.

 Chapter 98: Cold Competition

    The gathering went on without a hitch for an hour without any kind of major disturbances. Many of the beasts intermingled and treated each other with respect because they knew that they were on the same general level of power. Plus they were on the leader¡¯s territory and didn¡¯t dare to cause strife.

    Although they were curious about the mortal that had a status as high as the Gifted Beasts, most beasts stayed away from Akata, and in turn from Tabet. This development didn¡¯t disturb him however. The two simply talked to whoever wanted to strike up a conversation. Even though it wasn¡¯t really a conversation to them, but felt more like an interview or even an interrogation at times.

    ¡°Great Aka Tribe!¡± A cold yet soothing, celestial voice resounded in the ears of everyone in the courtyard as it caught their attention. All of the beasts and Akata became silent and turned their heads and body to focus in on the figure that was speaking. Star Sovereign Allica looked as dignified as ever as she swept her gaze across the crowd, her gaze momentarily sticking on Akata for a quick second longer than everyone else.

    ¡°This gathering was put together in order for us great tribes to meet with the mortal named Akata. He is someone who the Scarlet Rune Tribe holds dearly in their hearts due to a certain predicament that he saved them from. As such he was given the utmost status. Not only that but he is also a genius in cultivation, to the point that he can match the strength of our tribe¡¯s Gifted Beasts.¡±

    Her speech paused slightly as she focused her gaze on Akata. This gaze made Akata feel as though his body had went frozen. He unconsciously started to rotate his cultivation base in defense. Tabet took notice of this and sent word to his father mentally.

    ¡°The competition we will be having however, will be on a grander scale and will incorporate more than just fighting. It will focus on the fundamentals of strength and also knowledge. Also, Golden Runic Lord Taple has requested that there also be a competition called the Battle of Elements incorporated. I will turn it over to him to explain what it is.¡± With this, Star Sovereign Allica stepped back and allowed for Golden Runic Lord Taple to step forward. He gave her a quick deep look before proceeding to explain what the Battle of Elements were.

    Along with explaining what the Battle of Elements were he gave a simple overview of the competition. It would consist of different areas that would be scored separately. The final scores would be recorded and added together with the highest scorers moving on to the second round. The second round would be the final part of the competition and also the battle round. The one who won the most battles in the battle round would be the winner. Only those younger than twenty years of age could participate and there were no restrictions to cultivation base.

    Heavenly Beast Monarch Goliath spoke up next. ¡°Of course there will be rewards for this kind of competition. There will be rewards given to the top five scorers for each competition in the form of merit points and cultivation items. That is only for the first round however. The second round¡¯s rewards will be of much greater quality. The top ten who makes it to the second round will get a Beast Body Pill, the top five will receive a Spiritual Growth Pill, and first place will receive a Dantion Ascension Pill.¡± He looked out to see the faces of the crowd and what he saw was confusion. This was natural as none of them knew what these pills could do.This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.

    He continued on and said, ¡°Of course these pills aren¡¯t so simple. The Beast Body Pill is able to have your body breakthrough to be comparable to someone of the Beast Rank.¡± Just this alone made the faces of every beast turn fierce with greed. A body comparable to someone at the Beast Rank? They wouldn¡¯t have to worry about anyone under the Beast Rank then and just have to use their body to defeat them. What kind of pill was this?!

    ¡°The Spiritual Growth Pill has the ability to increase a person¡¯s potential. This will make cultivating much easier in the future and you will advance by leaps and bounds. And finally¡­¡± By this point some of the beasts couldn¡¯t hold back from having their eyes going bloodshot. Even some of the beasts that were older than twenty and in the Beast Rank were getting extremely envious.

    ¡°The Dantion Ascension Pill will allow for one to increase their Grade up to the 10th Grade or completely breakthrough to the Beast Rank. It is an outstanding opportunity for all of you. If you can seize this pill it will forever change your status as an individual. You will be seen as a chosen among chosen.¡± Of course the announcement of this pill caused a huge uproar to occur. It must be understood that advancing from Grade to Grade was hard in and of itself, but going from Rank to Rank was like traveling the distance from Heaven to Earth. Yet, this pill had a 100% success rate of getting you into the Beast Rank. How amazing was that?

    After this announcement Dragon Emperor Hymna stepped up and spoke in an ancient voice that calmed the hearts and minds of everyone present. ¡°This will be the first year of this competition that will come to be called The Gathering.This year only us four tribes will participate but after that every tribe that makes up the Great Aka Tribe will have the chance to join the competition. Because of the rewards, this competition will take place every six years.

    Also, the top five will not only be rewarded with items but also a special status. They will be the Gifted Beasts of the Great Aka Tribe. In other words, they will be the chosen of the tribe and will be under the guidance of the tribe and be developed carefully.¡± His words rang out into the ears of all present and caused another uproar to occur.

    The youths all started to get excited for a chance to show off their talents. If they did well they would have the chance to battle or even become a Gifted Beast. They would receive special recognition from, not just their tribe, but the Great Aka Tribe as a whole. This kind of special status couldn¡¯t be beat by anything. Even the great leaders of the tribe would treat them with respect and morph them into a powerful cultivator.

    Akata looked on silently, listening to the various items, statuses, and privileges that would become of this competition. He couldn¡¯t lie to himself and say that he wasn¡¯t enticed by these rewards. But he didn¡¯t know if these rewards could even help him, as they were made by beasts for beasts. Would it truly help him, or would it just be a waste. Whatever the case, this competition will let him gain more experience and grow naturally. He could at least make use of that aspect.

    ¡®I shouldn¡¯t shine too much in this competition. However, I want to do some actual fighting so I have to do enough to get into the second round at least. Hmm. What to do. It should also be about time for my punishment to be over so that I can leave this place.¡¯ Akata mused to himself with various thoughts. He calculated the time and figured that he had less than a week left.

    ¡®Well there¡¯s no reason not to shine if I¡¯m going to be leaving anyways. I might as well do my best and see how far I stack up against the top beasts of this tribe.¡¯ Although it sounded like Akata wasn¡¯t attached to this place, in truth he partially didn¡¯t wish to part with it. This was the place where he gained his second cultivation base and turned into a true plant cultivator. It was also where he had met Tabet and the rest of the Scarlet Tigers. But in the end he knew that at some point he had to go.

    He sighed and then a moment later his face was filled with eagerness to test himself on stage. However, that eagerness quickly left his mind as he felt a familiar sensation. He turned and looked to see Alabasta off in the corner looking straight at him with a cold smile filled with killing intent.

    ¡°Humph. These beasts just keep testing you. If I were able to get out of here they would all be slaughtered without a trace.¡± Noluck said with pride. Akata paid him no mind as he gazed at Alabasta. He then returned his own kind smile.

 Chapter 99: The Gathering Starts

    Alabasta gave a cold snort and then turned his head away from Akata. It made for an amusing sight for Akata.

    Akata listened on for the rest of the speech by the four top experts of the Great Aka Tribe. He didn¡¯t have to wait long before it was finally over. Soon all of the youths were getting anxious for a chance to enter and gain recognition in this competition called The Gathering.

    ¡°Let the competition commence then.¡± Golden Runic Lord Taple spoke out as he waved his paw in the air. Instantly, many different colored runes appeared that floated out into the sky. Some of the runes merged together while others stayed separate. In the blink of an eye, a giant floating arena was made from the combination of runes. It didn¡¯t stop there as another stage and then another stage formed. Soon there were five gigantic stages floating in the air, each of the stages were golden in color and radiated a heavenly might.

    The stages were circular and were on the same level. Soon, one began to move upward, then another one followed. Four moved up while one stayed in place. The moving stages began to rise on top of each other into a straight line. They all were perfectly in the middle of the central palace.

    They looked completely identical to each other. However, they were simply enormous. Each one was about the size of the whole central palace. It made a grand spectacle for every beast on the island as they watched as these stages just appear out of nowhere. It caught the attention of the whole island.

    ¡°Each of these stages should hold a different testing area. Everyone will go through these stages until they make it to the end. Once that happens you will be transported onto the next area. Once again the top five in each trial will get a reward. But only the first twenty who finish all of the trials will make it to the second round. The second round will be held on these stages.

    With that, Star Sovereign Allica, Dragon Emperor Hymna, and Heaven Beast Monarch Goliath all waved and made numerous smaller arenas appear. These were going to be the fighting stages of the youths until the final battles came. They were much smaller than the five giant stages but they still stretched out to be more than fifty meters. They blanketed the area around the five stages in midair.

    ¡°Now you might be wondering what the trials will be.¡± A warm smile appeared on Golden Runic Lord Taple¡¯s face as he looked at the huge stages floating in the air. He nodded his head and then four figures flew up into the air. If you were paying attention it would be simple to notice that each one came from one of the four top tribes. It would also be easy to see that these four people were the leaders of their tribes.

    Scarlet Runic Lord Tafei, Dragon King Wuna, Star Duke Alpha, and Earthen Beast Overlord Gingo all flew up to appear on one of the stages. With waves of their hands the four stages they were on began to take on numerous changes.

    Earthen Beast Overlord Gingo went to the first stage. There, he caused a green mist to appear all over the stage. This was the strongest of the four leaders and he was at the 10th Grade of the Beast Rank. Many people were wary of this trial because it was sure to not be simple.

    On the second stage Dragon King Wuna waved as seemingly nothing happened. It was weird to see but others also held this with caution as he was the second strongest amongst the leaders.Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.

    The third stage was occupied by Star Duke Alpha and he caused countless motes of light to appear all around the stage. Some of the motes of light were bigger than others while others were brighter. It looked weird but the general appearance didn¡¯t make the contestants too nervous, even though Star Duke Alpha had the same strength as Dragon King Wuna.

    And on the fourth stage was Scarlet Runic Lord Tafei. He made numerous pillars appear. Although they were numerous, most of them looked the same with half being black and the other half being white. Other than those pillars nothing else happened. Not many took his trial to be difficult considering he was the weakest of the leaders.

    The final stage didn¡¯t have anyone on it and just remained there, the same as before. The only stage that still looked like it was the second stage that Dragon King Wuna was on.

    ¡°The first stage will be a trial of the body, the next stage is a trial of mental strength, the third is a trial of speed, and the fourth is a trial of potential. The fifth and final one however¡­¡± Golden Runic Lord Taple had a playful smile on his face as he continued. ¡°IS A SECRET!¡± He bellowed out filling the ears of all of the beasts around.

    The three other great leaders shook their heads at the sound of Golden Runic Lord Taple¡¯s words. He then continued. ¡°You will find out more about the trials once you actually enter them. For now, you can speculate about the second through fifth trials.¡±

    All of the youthful beasts and Akata scrunched up their eyebrows at the words of Golden Runic Lord Taple. Speculate about the second through fifth trials? What about the first? Many of them had these thoughts but then immediately got the message right after. Some of the slower thinking ones didn¡¯t have to wait long for an answer either. Soon, light began to shine on all of the beasts younger than twenty years of age. With a flash, all of the beasts that were surrounded by light disappeared from their location.

    Akata felt a weird sensation envelop him as he saw light began to shine on him too. This was a familiar feeling to him though. ¡®This is similar to when I arrived here on this island. So it should be teleportation.¡¯ He thought to himself as he soon disappeared along with the rest of the young beasts.

    When he reappeared he was on the first stage with the mist. Looking at the stage from below and actually being on the stage were two completely different things. Above him he saw the enormous second stage and across he saw the boundless green mist. He felt a sense of pressure roiling from the mist and that was just from looking at it.

    Earthen Beast Overlord Gingo spoke out in a domineering voice. ¡°The first trial is a trial of the body. The time limit is one hour, go as far as you can into the mist, and stay inside for as long as you can. The one who makes it the farthest and stays the longest will get the top spot. You can now begin.¡± That was all he said before flying off of the stage.

    The green mist covered all over the first stage with an exception of the outer part. This was where all of the youths started at. All of them looked at the mist and then began to treat forward. Akata also did the same. As soon as he stepped foot inside the mist it was as if he felt his weight increase by more than half.

    ¡®What is this pressure?!¡¯ He couldn¡¯t help thinking internally as his eyes widened beyond belief. The pressure he just experienced with just putting a foot inside was already so much to bear that he couldn¡¯t even comprehend how he was going to make it to the center.

    Taking in a deep breath, Akata forced himself to take another step into the green mist. Now, his whole body was within the mist and he could feel the full effect of the pressure exploding out onto his body. Akata willed himself to take another step and then another. If it wasn¡¯t for him cultivating his body a while ago then he wouldn¡¯t even be able to even take a step inside of the mist. Akata¡¯s body was comparable to somebody at the 4th Grade but that was clearly not enough to advance smoothly in the mist.

    A beast¡¯s body was made to be tough and therefore, their bodies were always just as strong as their cultivation base, if not stronger. Even the weakest beast amongst this young group was at the 6th Grade. It would be easy to see how Akata was in last place right now.

    But unlike the usual ridicule most mortals would give to Akata for the lack of progress he made in the mist, the beasts had faces of shock. Especially the beasts of the Earthen Beast Tribe. ¡°Normal mortals would be crushed to death before they even put their whole foot in, but this Akata is able to actually take some steps inside the mist? He is definitely not normal.¡± Heaven Beast Monarch Goliath said with interest.

    The other three great leaders nodded their heads. Within Star Sovereign Allica¡¯s eyes however was a hint of killing intent. The more Akata showed how capable he was, the more her coldness would grow. She watched on silently as Akata proceeded along slowly, one step at a time. Giving a cold snort she turned her focus over to Alabasta who was treading along slowly but obviously with much more ease than Akata.

 Chapter 100: The First Trial

    The Gifted Beasts were obviously the one¡¯s to watch in this competition. The only one of the Gifted Beasts who wasn¡¯t doing as well as the others in this first trial was Pina. That was because her beast race didn¡¯t put much emphasis on body strength at all. She was last compared to the Gifted Beasts but overall her advancements weren¡¯t slow at all.

    Third compared to the Gifted Beasts was Alabasta and second was Tabet. In first was Gorgon. This was easy to see as his beast race focused heavily, almost exclusively, on body strength. This type of trial was right up his alley as if it were made for him. In fact it could be said that it was.

    Each of the trials was governed by one of the top four tribes, except for the fifth trial. The first trial was made by the Earthen Beast Tribe and therefore they made a trial of the body. It was obvious that it was made this way to have their chosen perform well in at least one area.

    Gorgon proceeded along smoothly as if he were walking in a park or sightseeing. The pressure around him was intense enough to make beasts at the 8th Grade wary and not want to move further, but it didn¡¯t faze him in the slightest. He was basking in the glory but he wasn¡¯t in first place.

    Ahead of him were about three other beasts that had higher cultivation bases than him. One of which was actually in the Beast Rank! This was a competition that restricted age and not cultivation base. The two other beasts were struggling to move further but the one in the Beast Rank was having a much easier time.

    This beast was apart of the Scarlet Rune Tribe and was nineteen years old. He could be considered a genius of the Scarlet Rune Tribe but Tabet outshone him. Not only was Tabet younger than this Scarlet Tiger, he was also close to his strength. Down the road age wouldn¡¯t make much of a difference, but in the youthful days a year could be what determined a genius and a regular being.

    Soon this youth in the Beast Rank stopped because of the intense pressure. He sat down and steadied himself to become accustomed to the pressure. ¡°I¡¯m in first place. I¡¯ll keep this up till the end and make it to the finals and become one of the Gifted Beasts. Then I can take Tabet¡¯s spot as the genius of the Scarlet Tigers.¡± With that he closed his eyes.

    Akata was still near the edge of the green mist, slowly making his way to the center of the trial. He found that the more he headed in the direction of the center, the stronger the pressure would become. Akata felt extreme pressure crushing his body heavily. This would normally be a terrible feeling for Akata but right now, he was smiling happily.

    ¡®Although his pressure is crushing me, it is also helping to make my body stronger. The further in that I go, the stronger I feel my body becoming. This is a competition meant to make the younger generation grow faster so this mist would obviously help us out.¡¯

    Akata tried to study the green mist that he was in but shook his head as he couldn¡¯t find out what made it so special. ¡°Noluck? Do you know what makes this mist special? How is it able to make my body stronger?¡±

    ¡°This is a simple kind of strategy that is the most basic of body strengthening methods. The pressure will slowly crush you but if you are able to stand up to it for a time then it will make your skin, bones, and more sturdier and stronger. The mist itself just happens to ease the pain one feels so that you¡¯ll go further and reach your true limits. It¡¯s nothing special really.¡± Noluck said blandly.

    Akata¡¯s eyes filled with determination. He would go as far as he can and would also pick back up on body cultivation. He could see how weak his body was compared to the other beasts as they had made it much further than he had right now. It was thanks to their bodies that they could progress so far without relying on extra abilities.Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.

    ¡®I want to make it as close to the center as possible. But how do I do that?¡¯ Akata thought of many different ways that he could try to go about heading deeper into the mist but none of those thoughts seemed to work. ¡®If only I could speed my process of healing up.¡¯ Akata sighed to himself.

    The mist would create pressure that would constantly batter against the person¡¯s body and also lessen the pain associated with it. However, it couldn¡¯t heal a person. Only by going through the process of increased pressure and becoming accustomed to it and then moving on would one continuously get a stronger body. But, if you could just continue to heal yourself while facing the pressure then your bones, flesh, organs, and everything else would get accustomed to the pressure much easier and grow much stronger faster.

    It was the same principle of if you broke a bone and it healed properly it would be much stronger. This was Akata¡¯s line of thinking right now. Suddenly, his eyes went wide with a thought that just came across his mind.

    ¡®What if instead of healing myself I refine myself? My crimson rune is great at refining energy so what if I refine this mist and use that energy for my body?¡¯ Akata took in a deep breath as he prepared to try out his theory.

    The mist would constantly pour into a person¡¯s body to numb the pain they felt but it was also bringing along an intense pressure with it. That way a person felt pressure inside and outside of their body. Akata took some of that mist and guided it toward his soul region where his crimson rune was. He rotated his crimson rune slowly and then let it gradually build up speed. The mist was drawn toward the rune and then it was absorbed the moment it came into contact with it.

    The green mist then came out as pure white where it spread over his whole body to be absorbed. Akata immediately felt that his body grew a bit stronger. His eyes showed excitement and he nearly jumped with joy. ¡®IT WORKED!¡¯ He wanted to yell but he kept it in.

    Taking another deep breath to calm himself, Akata steadied his emotions and began to absorb more of the green mist. After standing in place for about five minutes, he took a step forward and then another one. With each step the green mist would visibly weaken around him. Not only that but his body was also getting stronger at a terribly fast speed.

    Of course this caught the attention of quite a few people.

    ¡°What is this?! His body strength is advancing way too fast!¡±

    ¡°He was struggling to put even a foot in earlier but now he¡¯s walking as if there is nothing in his path?¡±

    ¡°Look! The mist around him is weakening somehow.¡±

    With that last remark even the leaders and great leaders took notice to it. Their faces filled with shock and confusion.

    Earthen Beast Overlord Gingo stood up with shock on his face. ¡°Impossible.¡± He blatantly stated. ¡°There¡¯s no way a mere mortal at his age can advance like this through this mist. It is specifically used to rear powerful bodies within my tribe, yet he is able to go through it with ease? What a joke.¡±

    It wasn¡¯t clear if he was calling the mist a joke or Akata, but either way it was easy to tell that he wasn¡¯t pleased.

    Akata advanced diligently and unashamedly. A smile on his face as he walked with ease past numerous beasts. The first beast he passed by was the 6th Grade beast who was the weakest amongst this group. This beast was apart of the Flying Dragon Snake Tribe and already had a weak body to begin with. Coupled with the fact that his cultivation wasn¡¯t that high either made him very disinterested in this trial.

    This youth looked on with shocked eyes as he watched Akata pass him. He had originally consigned himself that at least he could beat the mortal and wouldn¡¯t end up in last place, but upon seeing the mortal casually walk through and smiling as he made his way to the center almost made the beast cough up blood. But there was nothing he could do. He watched as Akata disappeared into the mist.

    As Akata walked further into the mist, the energy from it became richer and helped to strengthen his body more and more. Soon, Akata¡¯s body broke through to the 5th Grade. A little bit after that it was in the 6th Grade. Akata continued to walk his way to the center. Eventually he caught up to Pina and then passed by her.

    Not only her but he passed by Alabasta and then Tabet. Alabasta eyes were bloodshot and he had given Akata a cold snort. He didn¡¯t speak at all. Tabet just laughed and congratulated Akata. He wasn¡¯t sure how Akata could stand up to the pressure or how he made some of it disappear but he congratulated him nonetheless.

    It was in this fashion that an hour soon passed. The results of the trial were given out and it came out like so.

    1st Gorgon - Earthen Beast Tribe

    2nd Palet - Scarlet Rune Tribe

    3rd Tabet - Scarlet Rune Tribe

    4th Gringa - Earthen Beast Tribe

    5th Alabasta - Meteor Wolf Star Tribe

 Chapter 101: The Second Trial

    Of the four Gifted Beasts, three had made it into top five. Gorgon had even taken first place in this competition. His body could be considered extremely tough already and coupled with the fact that he was at the peak 10th Grade of the Docile Rank it was easy to see how he got first. He even managed to beat Palet who was in the Beast Rank. This was only because his tribe specialized in body strength.

    Tabet managed to come into third due to his cultivation base being so high and also because he had actually spent a bit of time strengthening his body. In fourth was one of the beasts who was at the Half-step Beast Rank, Gringa, who was from the Earthen Beast Tribe. Finally in fifth was Alabasta who forced himself to keep moving ahead. He could be seen in a sorry state but that didn¡¯t distract him from trying to achieve his best score.

    Akata was surprised that he didn¡¯t see his name on the list of top five. At first he thought that it was because he was a mortal but then he remembered the other condition besides making it further inside. ¡®I had to be in there for a long time too. I just happened to come up with an idea in the last fifteen minutes and managed to move that far.¡¯ Akata didn¡¯t feel dejected however. He had made huge strides in body cultivation and would never let it slip again.

    His body was now comparable to the 6th Grade of the Mortal Rank. He had actually absorbed a lot of the mist and therefore his body was still getting stronger as he stood around. A glow of light illuminated on his body while he was teleported to the second stage.

    As soon as he reappeared, Akata spread his nature sense out and investigated his surroundings. Although he could hear the beasts around him saying that there wasn¡¯t anything around, Akata couldn¡¯t believe it. With his nature sense spread out, Akata found that there was some kind of weird waves in the air. He studied them to find out that they caused his mind to stir a bit.

    Soon a voice rang out. ¡°Beasts of the Great Aka Tribe, hear me. This is a trial pertaining to mental strength. It will test how much you can endure with your mind and how far you can go. Just as you did in the first stage, go as far as you can toward the center and stay for as long as you can.¡± Dragon King Wuna said with an air of royalty.

    It was then that the many beasts began to step forward. Almost immediately, most of those beasts had their faces scrunched up with pain. They were suffering mental attacks that came from the invisible waves in the air. Some clenched their teeth and forced themselves to take some steps forward, some stood in place trying to accustom to the pain, and others actually took a step back to exit the waves.

    Akata had his nature sense spread out and he could see all of this happening. What caught his attention were the Wyrms. They were clearly in the same stage as the rest of the beasts but they flew or walked along as if this were nothing to them. It was as if this type of place was familiar to them.

    ¡®So they are skilled with mental energy then? Well¡­ I may not be a beast whose body is strong but when it comes to mental strength, I can compete in that!¡¯ Akata¡¯s eyes glittered brightly as he took a step forward into the invisible waves.

    Instantly, he felt a crashing wave hit his mind and it caused him pain. But his face didn¡¯t contort or look as if it had changed in the slightest. This kind of pain was negligible to him. Not only that but his mental strength could be considered monster like for his age. Akata proceeded along casually as if walking in his own bedroom.

    Akata didn¡¯t need any kind of tricks to advance in this stage as his mental strength was already at a level most couldn¡¯t even comprehend. A strong mentality made it so that one could comprehend faster and deeper, think faster, or even resist mental attacks or physical pain. It could be considered extremely important for an individual to have a strong mental energy, and Akata clearly took that to heart.Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions.

    This trial however, was simply too easy for him. Closer to the center, Pina could be seen struggling to sustain her mental facilities but then Akata came into view beside her. He looked at her and then smiled as he passed by. It was extremely casual in how he passed by as if he weren¡¯t even participating in this trial.

    Although this trial was meant to strengthen those who made it far into the invisible waves, Akata¡¯s mental strength was so high that it didn¡¯t make a difference to how far he went in, it didn¡¯t really help him in the slightest. He just proceeded along as casually as possible.

    ¡°Just what level is his mental strength at? It¡¯s almost monster like. No¡­ It clearly is at the level of a monster.¡± Dragon King Wuna stated to the other leaders around him.

    They all just nodded their heads and accepted the fact that this mortal was not normal at all. His performance near the end of the first stage could be said to be shocking but on the second stage, it was as if he were a monster in his own field. This couldn¡¯t even be considered a trial for him. The way Akata was walking made it seem as if he were an instructor looking at the various beasts perform.

    It was suffice to say that after an hour passed, Akata was sitting calmly in the center of the stage. This was really not a challenge for him at all. He sighed to himself. ¡®I wish I could be a monster like this in every field. Only then can I act as casually as I just did. Only true monster''s can act as they please.¡¯ Akata sighed once more and then his eyes gleamed with determination. He was going to become someone stronger than an expert, he was going to become a monster!

    The results for this stage came out as well and they were as follows

    1st Akata - Mortal

    2ndReina - Flying Dragon Snake Tribe

    3rdPina - Flying Dragon Snake Tribe

    4th Tabet - Scarlet Rune Tribe

    5thFlynna - Flying Dragon Snake Tribe

    Akata looked on with an indifferent expression as he waited to go to the third stage. He didn¡¯t even make this trial out to be challenge much less something to be happy about. In fact, it made him question himself.

    ¡®Why is my mental strength so strong? I didn¡¯t even have to struggle to get to the center where the mental attacks are the strongest. I can¡¯t be so simple. I should ask Fourth Elder when I get back to the sect.¡¯ Akata told himself.

    A light began to shine upon him as his body was transported to the third stage. There he sensed countless motes of light shining around the arena. With his nature sense he was able to see that the motes of light were ever changing from dim to bright from large to small. However, there was also a certain pattern to these lights.

    Akata quickly studied them and then focused his attention on Alabasta. The beast that set up this stage was from the Meteor Wolf Star Tribe so it was sure to be interesting for Akata.

    As if with perfect timing, Alabasta turned to look at Akata with cold and savage eyes. He licked his lips and turned away. Then a voice rang out for everyone to hear.

    ¡°Young beasts, this stage involves a trial of speed. Your goal is to get the most motes of light on this stage. Each mote of light is worth some points. The bigger the light the more points and the brighter the light the more points. Therefore you should strive to get the best mote of light. This is actually an elimination round so you need at least 100 points to proceed to the next round. I won¡¯t say how much these lights are worth so do your best to collect the most and the best to be sure that you grab a spot. Otherwise¡­ you will be eliminated.¡±

    Star Duke Alpha looked at Akata when he said the last sentence. Akata could feel the cold feeling emanating from his body and could sense the vast killing intent coming from him. ¡®Why do they keep targeting me? It¡¯s their whole tribe that hates me so much that they want to kill me. Humph. No matter, I¡¯ll just oppress them in this competition.¡¯ Akata mused to himself.

    He sensed all of the motes of light in the area judged where most of the best lights were. He silently rotated his cultivation base and prepared to sprint out toward the spot. This was a contest of speed. The slower you were the less likely you would be able to get enough points to pass. Therefore you had to be fast in this competition. Most likely, Alabasta would come out on top or either Palet, who is in the Beast Rank.Tabet would probably come out in third place.

    Since this was an elimination round, beasts would surely try to fight for their position so it was certain that he would suffer some attacks here and there. Akata readied himself for the trial to start when he noticed Alabasta looking in his direction with killing intent locked onto him.

    ¡°Start!¡±

    Alabasta immediately sped off at top speed toward Akata. Akata¡¯s eyes went wide as he immediately held his arm up to block the incoming charge.

 Chapter 102: The Third Trial

    In terms of speed, Alabasta was undoubtedly number one under the Beast Rank within the Great Aka Tribe. He was even faster than some of the weaker Beast Ranked beasts. His speed was something those under the 7th Grade couldn¡¯t even see, let alone defend against. Although Akata had two cultivation bases, both were only at the 7th Grade so he wouldn¡¯t fare much better. He could at least track some of Alabasta¡¯s movements and attempt to prepare for them, but all in all he was pretty much defenseless against him.

    Luckily Akata was prepared for the assault and it also helped that Alabasta was a bit of distance away. Even though that bit got covered in an extremely short amount of time, it was enough for Akata to steadily defend himself.

    Akata put his arm in front of his chest but it wasn¡¯t meant to defend himself. This movement was meant to trick Alabasta into feeling more comfortable in attacking. It was a simple tactic but with this, Alabasta would be less worried about defending, even if only by a little.

    Akata used this chance to rotate his golden rune vigorously. All of a sudden, an intense pressure exploded out of him along with a golden light. The light was extremely bright while the pressure was extremely heavy. The sudden appearance of the really bright light caused Alabasta to shield his eyes, therefore he chose to slow down a lot. Coupled with the pressure it also decreased his speed. His speed as of this moment couldn¡¯t even be compared to half of what is was.

    ¡®He wants to attack me, eh? Humph. I don¡¯t have the power to fight him directly but I can hinder him in this competition. I will make sure he doesn¡¯t get in first place.¡¯ Akata thought to himself as he chose to, instead of continuing to fight with Alabasta, take some of the motes of light.

    He spread his nature sense out far and wide, enough to cover an area of roughly 300 meters. Instantly, images of various motes of light appeared in his mind. Some were small some were big, others were bright and others were dim. But it was hard to tell because the motes of light frequently changed sizes and brightness.

    ¡®Head for the brightest and biggest ones.¡¯ This was Akata¡¯s first thought as he dashed toward a nearby mote of light. Alabasta was right behind him with a face full of rage. He had been temporarily blinded and had to stop his attack. This could be seen as a humiliation for him so as soon as he recovered a bit he went right for Akata.

    Akata immediately reached out and grabbed a mote of light that was in front of him. That light was absorbed into his body where he could feel a blessing from it. He was about to go in a different direction when he frowned. Immediately he spun around and turned into a black mist-like substance. His speed rocketed up as he dashed toward another mote of light. This was none other than his Shadowfeet movement skill.

    ¡°You can¡¯t run away from me haha.¡± Alabasta laughed coldly as a neon light started to glow around his body. He took a step forward and as that foot fell he appeared right in front of Akata. The distance wasn¡¯t quite large between them initially, only 10 meters, but the time he took to cross that distance felt as if it were instantaneous.

    As soon as he appeared he swiped his paw forward toward Akata¡¯s throat. Akata felt his mind reeling at the speed of Alabasta. He had witnessed a bit of it before but had never really had to face it. In their last battle, it was mostly a head on duel. In fact, Alabasta had stood still most of the time during the fight.

    Now, Akata was fully experiencing the terrifying speed of Alabasta first hand. Akata¡¯s eyes went wide and he started to glow with a light. Alabasta smiled coldly as he closed his eyes, as if prepared for the same trick. ¡°You¡¯re not going to get me this time.¡± He spoke coldly. He kept his hand going forward but to his surprise it didn¡¯t hit anything.

    He opened his eyes to see that nobody was in front of him. He looked around lost to see Akata far off in the distance grabbing multiple motes of light. His mind filled with utter confusion and madness and was about to rush out toward Akata when a voice was transmitted to him. ¡°Forget it for now, you¡¯ll have your chance later on. Just collect the motes of light and win this competition.¡± This was none other than Star Sovereign Allica. ¡°Yes!¡± Alabasta responded. He turned away with a grim face as he started to collect his own motes of light.The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

    Akata obviously noticed that Alabasta had given up. He took note of how he stopped his pursuit even though he looked as if he were about to charge straight for him. ¡®There¡¯s obviously somebody telling him what to do.¡¯ He turned his head and went to gather more motes of light.

    His face was pale due the skill he had just tried. It was his combination of the Lunarsun Steps and Shadowfeet movement skills. It was very much so incomplete and used up a ton of Akata¡¯s energy. Luckily, the use of this skill had gotten him away from Alabasta in the knick of time. The speed that it had mustered was surprising to even him.

    ¡®If I¡¯m able to perfectly merge these movement skills together it would be unimaginably fast. Just this incomplete version alone was able to make me move as fast as Alabasta had.¡¯ Although he was tired, his heart filled with utter anticipation to merge these two skills together. ¡®I might be able to affect Alabasta¡¯s performance a bit but not much now. I wasn¡¯t expecting to use that much energy.¡¯ Akata thought to himself a bit and then filled himself with determination. He turned around and headed in Alabasta¡¯s direction.

    Although Akata and Alabasta were battling, it didn¡¯t draw too much attention. That was because everyone else on the stage was also fighting each other. This was an elimination round after all. Many fights were going on and some ended up with people getting eliminated right then and there. Getting thrown off the stage would get you eliminated along with anything that would hinder you on the next stage such as injuries. Nobody was really going all out but the number of contestants made it hard to compete.

    Even though Alabasta started off late in collecting motes of light, he could simply make it up with his immense speed. At first he had been in last place when he was chasing Akata but after he started to collect the motes of light, he quickly shot up to the top 10. His speed was just too great. It would be hard to get first place but he was confident he could do it if he tried hard enough. But he didn¡¯t count on Akata coming back.

    Alabasta was about to reach out to grab another mote of light when all of a sudden a black arc of light appeared and prevented him from making contact with it. His eyes filled with savageness as he viciously turned his head to look at which beast was dumb enough to go against him. To his surprise however, it was no beast, but a youth carrying a scythe in his hand.

    Alabasta gave a cold snarl as he charged toward Akata with an air of madness. Neon light exploded off of him as he headed straight for him. Akata simply smiled as he put away the scythe and threw out a punch. This punch was backed with the power of his red and gold runes. It created a huge blast of energy that shot out toward Alabasta.

    This blast of energy swept out across the stage and actually knocked some weaker beasts off of the stage. Akata and Alabasta were close to the edge and these beasts were unprepared so they were knocked off by Akata¡¯s blow meant for Alabasta.

    Alabasta simply rushed through the blast of energy as if it weren¡¯t even there. ¡°You tricked me twice so now I have to pay you tenfold!¡± He roared in a savage filled voice. ¡°I¡¯m going to tear you to shreds this instant!¡± The neon light surrounding his body exploded out and he disappeared to reappear right in front of Akata. He swept out with his paw. Swish!

    It hit nothing but air again. He watched as the ¡°Akata¡± in front of him simply turned into a purple mist and dispersed into the air. He looked up to see Akata off in the distance collecting more motes of light. Alabasta¡¯s eyes became bloodshot as he ran out once more toward Akata.

    When Akata had threw his fist out, he had rotated his red and gold runes. When he rotated his gold rune he made a golden light shine from his body. With the golden light there it hid the purple rune under his fist that he used to make a fake Akata with his illusion.

    Alabasta charged toward Akata who was off in the distance and caused a neon light to shoot toward it. Boom! An explosion rang out that some of the surrounding beasts were caught up in. Immediately some of them were eliminated from the contest. Alabasta¡¯s eyes became more bloodshot as he saw ¡°Akata¡± once again disperse as a purple mist. He let out a roar as he ran around trying to find the real Akata.

    Meanwhile, the real Akata was hanging in the air. He had actually been in the same area as his first fake clone, but he had shaped himself to look like a mote of light. With his skill and insights into the Inner Element of Illusions and nature energy, he was able to cast a rune within the range of his nature sense. This made it so that he could create a clone within his 300 meter range and fool Alabasta time and time again. While he himself could pose as a mote of light.

    Of course he didn¡¯t just stay in the same place the whole time. He moved around toward motes of light collecting them while also keeping Alabasta occupied. There were some special motes of light that moved around so people didn¡¯t see this as suspicious. Each time Alabasta would stop pursuing, Akata would wait a while to provoke him again then set things in motion once more.

    It was in this fashion that this trial came to a close. The results for the third stage came in:

    1st Palet - Scarlet Rune Tribe

    2nd Tabet - Scarlet Rune Tribe

    3rdReina - Flying Dragon Snake Tribe

    4th Azara - Meteor Wolf Star Tribe

    5thPina - Flying Dragon Snake Tribe

 Chapter 103: The Fourth and Final Trial

    Alabasta stood stock still as he listened to the results of the third trial being bellowed out. He didn¡¯t even hear his name being called for the top five. It must be known that everyone, including the great leaders expected him to take first place in this trial. Yet, he wasn¡¯t even able to come out into the top five. This was a type of humiliation that he couldn¡¯t even comprehend. He knew that it was his own anger that led him to not get into the top five but right now he just wanted to blame Akata.

    He started to laugh coldly and spoke out in a cruel sinister tone. ¡°I can¡¯t wait to personally rip you to shreds.¡± His eyes were bloodshot and he seemed to not be himself. With those words he walked away toward a corner and awaited the start of the next trial.

    Scarlet Runic Lord Tafei rose up into the air and spoke with a calm soothing voice. ¡°It is time for the fourth trial. It will be a trial of potential. All of those who weren¡¯t eliminated can move onto the fifth trial. Every beast, whether eliminated or not, should have their potential checked. Those who weren¡¯t eliminated must have it checked. Let¡¯s begin.¡± With that, he waved his paw and a light sprang up on all of the beasts that hadn¡¯t been eliminated in the third trial. The one¡¯s who had been eliminated had to go to a separate place to have their potential checked.

    Akata appeared on the fourth stage in front of two pillars. One of the pillars were black while the other was white. He stood in front of the two pillars just like everybody else.

    ¡°Touch the white pillar.¡± Scarlet Runic Lord Tafei said. As he said that, every beast and Akata all touched the white pillar in front of them. Instantly numbers began to pop up on the white pillar.

    Akata looked at his pillar and saw that it had the number 13 on it. He looked around to see if anyone else had the same number but couldn¡¯t really find anyone. Most of the other numbers were 17 18 with the lowest one he saw being 15. ¡®Could this be showing my age?¡¯ He thought to himself.

    Before he could think anymore Scarlet Runic Lord Tafei spoke out again. ¡°Touch the black pillar.¡± Just like before, everyone followed his orders and touched the black pillar in front of them. Instead of a number popping up this time, however, the pillar broke into 11 different parts. Each part floated in the air above the other making the pillar seem taller.

    Akata saw this and then looked on. Then the bottom part lit up with a red light. Then the second part lit up along with the third. All of a sudden 7 parts lit up fully. However, it didn¡¯t stop there. All of a sudden, Akata¡¯s pillar started to shake as the red light moved over and made way for a green light. The green light shot up to light 7 parts as well. But, it only lit up half of the 7th part. Half of the pillar was lit by a red light while the other half was lit up with a green light.

    The black and white pillar then began to shake as they came closer to each other. In the blink of an eye the two merged together to make a multicolored pillar. The pillar then went all gray as it then turned red, then turned orange, yellow, green, and finally lit halfway with blue. There it just stayed.

    Akata looked on with confusion as he didn¡¯t know what none of this meant or what was happening. But he could tell that the higher ups knew what was going on. Ever since that green light started to show up on the black pillar all of the experts eyes filled with shock. Some of them stood up and others went as far as to fly in his direction.The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

    He could feel the pressure weighing down on him and it wasn¡¯t good at all. He could even feel a cold savage aura lock onto him. But it wasn¡¯t from Alabasta this time, but from almost every single expert in the area. He wanted to know what was happening and he didn¡¯t have to wait long before a voice rang out.

    ¡°Mortal. I would have liked the chance to experiment on you but it seems that I won¡¯t get the chance anymore. Ahaha. To think that you are actually a plant cultivator as well as a mortal cultivator! This is simply wonderful. I¡¯ll steal your cultivation base and have it for myself.¡± A wild laughter rang out as a 12 meter tall Gatorape shot towards Akata.

    He wasn¡¯t the only one as other experts shot toward Akata as well from afar. All of these beasts were in the Beast Rank. The weakest one among them was at the 5th Grade. Akata couldn¡¯t stand up to the pressure that was being targeted at him and he coughed up multiple mouthfuls of blood. His face paled and he backed up from his spot.

    Scarlet Runic Lord Tafei snorted coldly and waved his hand, causing a ring of orange runes to appear and rain down fireballs toward the incoming experts. He wasn¡¯t alone as other experts from the Scarlet Rune Tribe joined in to help out. Instantly fighting ensued between the groups.

    As it went on others joined in to help out. Even though, the Scarlet Rune Tribe was number one, against the other top three tribes they were clearly at a disadvantage. Just when Golden Runic Lord Taple was about to step in and put a stop to all of this, Star Sovereign Allica and Heaven Beast Monarch Goliath both stopped him.

    ¡°Golden Runic Lord, this is not our place to get involved. It is just one mortal who, for some reason, has a plant cultivation base. It would be extremely beneficial for us to get that for ourselves. Why are you still protecting him?¡± Star Sovereign Allica said in her calmest voice which still sounded cold.

    ¡°Get the hell out of my way Allica!¡± Golden Runic Lord Taple said as he waved his hand causing an orange and blue rune to mix together and shoot out toward her. But then, Heaven Beast Monarch Goliath intervened and stopped the attack. Soon, the three of them were fighting.

    There were battles going on everywhere now. Some of the experts sent messages to their young tribe members telling them to capture Akata. This made it so that even the young generation was fighting as well. The Scarlet Rune Tribe was fighting by themselves and were constantly being pushed back.

    Tabet had made it to Akata¡¯s side and was helping him fight. It also helped that they had support of the only Beast Ranked youth of this generation, Palet. With the three of them working together not many beasts were able to get close to Akata. The only troublesome one¡¯s were the two Halfstep Beast Ranked beasts, Reina from the Flying Dragon Snake Tribe and Gringa from the Earthen Beast Tribe. The two of them alone weren¡¯t completely able to tie down Palet but when Alabasta joined in it changed that.

    Pina and Gorgon joined hands to fight Tabet. They couldn¡¯t handle him alone but they could when other beasts joined in. It was extremely tough to fight against multiple opponents by yourself no matter who it was. And all of the Scarlet Tigers were experiencing that right now.

    Akata was fighting as well using ruthless tactics to keep from being captured. He struck out multiple times causing powerful blasts of air to hit the beasts. With his body being comparable to the 6th Grade, it made his punches and kicks extremely fierceful. He constantly used his Lunarsun Steps to evade attacks and to gain an advantage. With the gold and red light shining over his body he looked like a warrior on the stage.

    But no matter how ruthless he, or the other Scarlet Tigers were, the number of opponents they were facing were too much. Not to mention the fact that their opponents weren¡¯t weak at all. They could be said to have their same strength. This made for a bitter fight for the Scarlet Tigers.

    It was at this point that a sigh could be heard. ¡°I¡¯ve lived a long life but this¡­ is just too enticing of an offer to give up.¡± Dragon Emperor Hymna spoke out as he slowly rose. An ancient air rolled off of him as his eyes landed on Akata¡¯s body. He didn¡¯t even look around him as he slowly made his way over to Akata.

    Golden Runic Lord Taple and Scarlet Runic Lord Tafei were both panting at this point. One was being held up by others while the other, even if he wasn¡¯t held up, couldn¡¯t stand a chance against this powerful figure. He was at the 3rd Grade of the Temporal Rank after all! The same level as his own father.

    Dragon Emperor Hymna stopped in the air above Akata, looking down at him. A bitter smile appeared on his old face and his eyes looked forgiving. But then that all vanished as his face filled with determination. He stretched his hand out in an attempt to grab Akata. ¡°Come here!¡± He yelled out.

    ¡°Are you looking to die?!¡± A voice rang out.

 Chapter 104: Turning the Tables

    Tabet was going all out. Around him, time was constantly being changed in the area. Multiple orange trees could be seen around him and a green glow covered the area. Scarlet Runic Lord Tafei could be seen mixing multiple runes together, creating powerful pressure and wreaking havoc wherever those runes crossed. Golden Runic Lord Taple was surrounded by the glow of golden runes.

    All of the Scarlet Tigers were fighting to protect their savior. The one who had saved their entire race and tribe. Even though he was a mortal, they didn¡¯t care at all. They still fought recklessly in order to make sure that Akata, would not fall into the other tribes hands.

    Akata deep down felt as if it wasn¡¯t his place to be so he didn¡¯t attack to kill. He only knocked some of the beasts out. However, he was reaching his limit as well. The enemy''s numbers were just too great and they were actually very strong. These were the talented beasts in the whole Great Aka Tribe after all.

    Suddenly, Akata felt a grave sensation of deadly crisis wash over his body. Sweat poured down his back and face as he subconsciously spread his nature sense up into the sky. There he saw a long dragon up in the air looking straight at him. The dragon looked ancient and created a powerful oppressive pressure. It reached its hand out and spoke some simple words. ¡°Come here!¡±

    The feeling of blankness washed over Akata. It felt as if his whole body was at the mercy of whoever came into contact with it. He couldn¡¯t move anywhere or even think of anything. Sound stopped entering his ears and his nature sense started to become muddled. All he could hear was a cold voice ring out in the empty silence that surrounded him.

    ¡°Are you looking to die?!¡± Along with the voice came a shocking pressure that crashed into the hand of Dragon Emperor Hymna. This caused his hand to be pushed away from Akata. Along with the pressure came a multicolored rune that swept toward his body.

    Boom!

    The rune flashed brightly and then exploded on contact. Dragon Emperor Hymna¡¯s face looked unsightly as he yelled out, ¡°You dare?!¡± He was extremely angry that he was stopped in his attempt to get Akata. It was supposed to be a smooth plan of him getting Akata but somebody had to suddenly stop him in his tracks.

    ¡°Why wouldn¡¯t I dare?¡± A snort came crashing out into the ears of Dragon Emperor Hymna. Along with the snort came a stout figure. It was of a tiger that looked to be as built as tough as a strong skyscraper. He also looked to be in his later years of life but only by a bit.

    ¡°And you are?¡± Dragon Emperor Hymna said with a voice filled with anger and resentment. He was about to lash out at any moment.

    He didn¡¯t have to wait long for an answer as the Scarlet Tigers looked at this new arrival and immediately called out. ¡°Great Priest Bayou!¡±

    ¡°Great Priest Bayou!¡± They kept calling out until it sounded more like a summoning. It was none other than Great Priest Bayou of the former Scarlet Tiger Tribe. He looked around at all of the fighting and waved his hand. Instantly, many Scarlet Tigers appeared on the battlefield.

    ¡°Help our brothers and sisters out in this fight! It is¡­ to save our savior!¡± He cried out. In that instant that the other Scarlet Tigers began to fight the tide of battle immediately changed. It was no longer the Scarlet Rune Tribe slowly getting pushed back but the Scarlet Tigers gaining even ground.Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website.

    Priest Bambe appeared next to Scarlet Runic Lord Tafei and caused an hourglass to appear in the air. Instantly, the battle slowed down and Scarlet Runic Lord Tafei could have a quick breather. He looked over at Priest Bambe with mixed emotions on his face.

    Priest Bambe looked back at him and said, ¡°We can catch up later. For now¡­ let¡¯s fight!¡± With that he caused numerous runes to appear in the air. Scarlet Runic Lord Tafei nodded and added onto the runes. The two immediately began to fight together in shocking fashion. It was as if they completed each other. If alone they could take on three experts at a time then together they could take on ten!

    Tabet and Palet received some help as well. Many youths came to aid in the battle and help Akata. Among them was a Scarlet Tiger at the Halfstep Beast Rank and one at the Great Circle of the Docile Rank. This immediately lightened up the oppressive air.

    ¡°Brother Yazhi, glad to have you back!¡±

    ¡°Sister Parie, I can¡¯t believe it¡¯s been so long.¡±

    ¡°Ahaha, old brother Hafur, where have you been?¡±

    The Scarlet Tigers that had been fighting welcomed their brothers and sisters as if they had gotten back from a trip. Not only did the appearance of the other Scarlet Tigers alleviate the tough fighting, it also livened their battle intent.

    Star Sovereign Allica, Heaven Beast Monarch Goliath, and Dragon Emperor Hymna all had unsightly expressions on their faces. This turn of events was very much so unexpected. Not only had an expert at the Temporal Rank appeared, he was even supporting the Scarlet Tigers. It would have been one thing if he had come alone as well. But he also brought many reinforcements to help alleviate the pressure.

    Maybe they could have persuaded the expert to help them out by offering him gifts or other things. But to their surprise, he was actually a member of the Scarlet Tiger race. This made it so that there was no way he would betray his own beast race.

    Dragon Emperor Hymna instantly started to trade blows with Great Priest Bayou. After hearing his name he remembered who he was. ¡°You strength is only at the 2nd Grade, correct? You can¡¯t possibly stand up to me.¡± He said as he was rushing over to him.

    Great Priest Bayou didn¡¯t respond as he rushed toward Dragon Emperor Hymna as well. They both collided and Dragon Emperor Hymna¡¯s face filled with shock. ¡°Th¡­ th¡­ Third Grade? How?! This is impossible!¡± He yelled out as he attacked relentlessly. No matter how he attacks, his attacks were only slightly stronger than Great Priest Bayou¡¯s.

    ¡°I broke through obviously. It happens all the time to cultivators, what¡¯s so surprising about it hehe.¡± Great Priest Bayou laughed out as he charged in toward Dragon Emperor Hymna. An orange, red, yellow, and tan rune appeared in the air as they combined together. These were the Inner Elements of Fire, Blood, Air, and Sand combining into one force. An orange cloud formed in the air and soon a drop of scorching hot red sand could be seen dropping from out of it. A shocking pressure roiled out and blanketed the area.

    ¡°Blood Cloud Apocalypse.¡± Great Priest Bayou spoke out softly. A drop of blood sand landed on an expert at the 8th Grade of the Beast Rank and he immediately started to feel his blood boil and burn. Soon his skin started to turn hard and crack and crumble. After that, there was no more of him.

    ¡°Cease all of this fighting or suffer my wrath.¡± He said these words coldly and quietly but it carried a huge pressure.

    It was also in that moment that Golden Runic Lord Taple struck out as well. A gold, yellow, and blue rune appeared and merged together. These runes were the Outer Element of Holiness and the Inner Elements of Air and Water. They formed a golden cloud in the sky that dropped a single golden drop. This drop landed on an expert at the 8th Grade of the Beast Rank and he instantly transformed into a golden statue. He didn¡¯t even have enough time to scream out or resist before he died.

    Likewise, Scarlet Runic Lord Tafei and Priest Bambe struck out together and cut down a beast at the 8th Grade of the Beast Rank. All three of the beasts that had died were from different tribes. One from the Earthen Beast Tribe, one from the Flying Dragon Snake Tribe, and one from the Meteor Wolf Star Tribe. Each of the opposing tribes had suffered a loss and it wasn¡¯t light.

    The Scarlet Tigers stood tall with a fierce look in their eyes. All of their minds were united sending a message. ¡°If you keep this up, more will die.¡± It was a simple message but carried a lot of weight. Did the other tribes want this to turn into a bloodbath?

    Everything went silent and still as the higher ups considered the options.Only the Scarlet Tigers looked calm in the silence. After a bit of time Dragon Emperor Hymna spoke out. ¡°Flying Dragon Snake Tribe¡­ you are to stay your hand.¡±

    ¡°Earthen Beast Tribe¡­ stay your hand.¡±

    Star Sovereign Allica seemed unwilling but eventually spoke out as well. ¡°Meteor Wolf Star Tribe¡­ stay¡­ stay your hand.¡± She spoke slowly, as if each word caused her pain. She looked scornfully at Great Priest Bayou, then at Golden Runic Lord Taple, and finally at Akata.

    Akata felt her eyes land on him and he shuddered. Tabet went to his side along with another familiar beast, Balii. She looked at him and then slightly smiled.

 Chapter 105: Awaiting Departure

    At first the situation looked grim for the Scarlet Tigers and Akata, but then it turned completely around in their favor. Not only had they been able to maintain order and save Akata, they had also been able to fully form back together and gain much more power. Now they could fully be called the number one tribe and the leaders of the Great Aka Tribe.

    The battles quickly ended and nobody moved a muscle. Golden Runic Lord Taple took in a long deep breath and smiled. ¡°Earthen Beast Tribe, Meteor Wolf Star Tribe, and Flying Dragon Snake Tribe this competition is now over please return to your homes. Lafui, Yaner, and Laque please escort our guests out of the palace.¡± He spoke with an air of power and authority.

    All of the leaders had grim looks on their faces as they slowly made their way out of the palace. Star Sovereign Allica had the grimmest look of them all as she was escorted out. Dragon Emperor Hymna could only sigh to himself. ¡®It seems it was never meant to be.¡¯ Only he knew what that meant.

    After a bit of time had passed and all of the other tribes had exited the palace. Golden Runic Lord Taple had dismissed most of the Scarlet Tigers. Only a select few remained which were Great Priest Bayou, Priest Bambe, Scarlet Runic Lord Tafei, Tabet, Balii, and his favorite servant Lawou.

    ¡°Lawou, tend to any injuries that Tabet, Balii, and Akata might have.¡± With that, the leaders and former leaders talked amongst themselves. Even though they were clearly speaking to each other, no sound could be heard coming from their area. It was as if they were blocked off from the world.

    Lawou turned to face the three young people and asked politely, ¡°Where are you all hurt?¡± Her voice was soft and kind. It could nurture a fallen baby bird back to full health.

    ¡°I¡¯m ok! Just a bit drained that¡¯s all. With a little rest I will be perfectly fine.¡± Tabet laughed. Lawou shot him a meaningful glance and then turned her attention to Balii and Akata. Without even asking them the same question she began to lift up her paw and swipe it down.

    This simple movement caused her cultivation base to wash over the two. She was able to get a very good idea of what their bodies were experiencing. Continuing on without stopping she flashed an incantation gesture and caused an aqua colored rune to manifest in the air. The light of the aqua rune showed on Balii and Akata and quickly healed them of whatever injuries they had. Not only that but their mind was healed as any fatigue they had felt was utterly washed away.

    Akata felt a huge pressure release from his body as the aqua light hit him. His body lightened up and his mind became much clearer. It felt as if he was back in his peak state. He looked deeply at Lawou and smiled graciously. ¡°Thanks!¡± he said happily.

    Lawou¡¯s body sagged a bit but she nodded nonetheless. With that she stood there and waited for further orders from her leaders.

    Soon, the high ranking Scarlet Tigers stopped talking to each other and faced the young people. Golden Runic Lord Taple looked at Akata with a wry smile as he sighed and said, ¡°Young Akata. I really appreciate you helping my tribe. Without you, we would¡¯ve been done for and none of this would have been possible. But it seems that in order for my Great Aka Tribe to truly thrive I have to combine the effort of all of the tribes who make it up.¡± Golden Runic Lord Taple paused as if weighing what he was about to say.This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

    Akata could see the conflicted and complicated look in his eyes. He wasn¡¯t an unintelligent child and knew where he was trying to go. With a smile he stepped forward and said in a respectful tone, ¡°Golden Runic Lord Taple, it has been my honor to save your people and dwell amongst them. However, I will be leaving soon to go back to my own sect. Given the time, I say in about a day or two I will be ready to go. If you would please watch out for me within these two days I will greatly appreciate it.¡± Akata said as he was bowing.

    Golden Runic Lord released a sigh of relief as he nodded his head. ¡°Alright then.¡± Not only him, but the other higher ups sighed with relief as well. Although they felt very grateful towards Akata, this tribe was their future to glory. Akata was a mortal and he didn¡¯t know what the beasts community was actually like.

    ¡°Then it is settled, you¡¯ll stay in the palace for the remainder of your stay until it is time for you to go.¡± Golden Runic Lord Taple stated.

    Tabet looked at Akata with a complicated expression. He didn¡¯t want Akata to leave but he knew that this day would come soon. His mind was filled with lots of different emotions. Even though he had only known Akata for a short while, it felt to him like Akata was his everything. He wanted to stay with Akata, to adventure with him, to experience life and grow powerful with him. But alas, they were two totally different beings with different ways of life. It just wasn¡¯t meant to be.

    Night soon arrived and the starry sky illuminated the land below. Akata and Tabet were meditating in a room quietly. Akata¡¯s face was completely calm but Tabet could be seen as having a mixed face. Various emotions surfaced upon it that he just couldn¡¯t manage to hide.

    Akata had his nature sense spread out and could obviously feel that Tabet wasn¡¯t focused at all. He sighed and then stood up. Tabet lifted his head to look at Akata standing there.

    Akata walked to a window and then looked out of it. Although he couldn¡¯t see anything, he could feel that the starlight was shining on his face. ¡°Tabet. Don¡¯t take this as a goodbye, only as a see you later. I had someone that I thought was going to die once. But it just so happened that they are living healthily and that I will be able to see them again. You never know when or if you will see someone again but you should never treat their departure as a goodbye.¡±

    Turning his body to face Tabet, Akata spoke extremely calmly. ¡°We¡¯ll meet again in the future. I can promise that. And when we do I¡¯ll be much stronger than I am now and we can spar. I still have to make up for our first encounter haha.¡± Akata laughed.

    Tabet¡¯s mind cleared up and eased a bit as he laughed with Akata. Although what Akata said didn¡¯t completely end his worries and tensions, it did help with easing it. They talked for a little while and then went back to meditating.

    Akata was completely focused on merging his two movement skills together and make them completely one. Since he had begun merging the two he had made huge strides. They could now be considered twenty percent merged.

    In this fashion a day quickly passed by. Not much happened in the Great Aka Tribe besides the news that spread about the competition and the addition of new Scarlet Tigers. The Scarlet Rune Tribe undoubtedly became the number one tribe and the leader of the Great Aka Tribe. If before it was iffy considering they weren¡¯t actually the strongest, now it was as clear as a sunny day. Even when Earthen Beast Overlord Gingo broke through to the Temporal Rank, the Scarlet Rune Tribe¡¯s position wouldn¡¯t falter even a bit. That was because they had two Temporal Rank Grade 3 beasts among their members. And they were both fairly young!

    Given a few more years, Scarlet Runic Lord Tafei would also break through to the Temporal Rank and that would increase their power even further! This was going to be the beginning of their rise to utter power and take back their mainland.

    During the time that Akata was in the palace he was given some pills as well. One pill was a bright orange and blue color that showed with an aqua light. It bathed on his body and made him feel tougher. This was none other than the Beast Body Pill. Akata accepted the pill and immediately went to use it.

    It wasn¡¯t a regular pill that you had to consume, but one in which you had to put in a bath to use. Akata instantly used this and tried to break through in his body. But he soon realized that he had underestimated the effect of this pill.

    ¡®This really hurts.¡¯ Akata thought to himself as the pain made his body feel as if it were burning and freezing at the same time. It was a heart-wrenching pain that was borderline unbearable, but to Akata it just felt like a couple of fierce stings here and there. He could tolerate this level of pain easily.

    All of a sudden however, a new sensation came which brought a terrible level of suffering. Akata¡¯s skin started to turn orange and his blood became blue, he also started to glow with an aqua light as well. His skin felt as if it were on fire while his blood was rapidly freezing over. This kind of pain would be little to nothing to Akata but soon the two effects started to interact with each other.

 Chapter 106: Awaiting Departure (2)

    Akata¡¯s skin felt as if it were blazing in a searing volcano while his blood felt as if it were freezing in an arctic environment. By themselves it wouldn¡¯t be considered much to Akata but then these two effects started to interact with each other. His blood would melt and then evaporate until it turned to ice shards and start over again. This made his blood vessels tear up from the inside all over the place in his body.

    Along with his blood vessels tearing up, his skin was simultaneously cracking up from the repeated heating and cooling it was experiencing and continuously fell off his body. Also his skin would often melt off slowly or freeze up and cause even more pain. These things were already hard to deal with but then an extra effect of the pill kicked in. It was the healing aspect of the pill which continuously healed Akata from whatever happened to him. No matter how much skin or blood he lost it would always regenerate and repeat its process of being destroyed.

    Even though it was arduous, Akata gritted his teeth and sat in the bath unmoving. He didn¡¯t wail even once or let a sound escape his mouth. This was a painful experience but he could gradually feel his body becoming much more tougher than it had been.

    In truth, this pill wasn¡¯t meant to have such a painful effect on the body. That was because it was a pill meant for beasts. Beasts had bodies that were comparable to their cultivation level or greater. The Beast Body Pill was meant to be given to the geniuses of the competition and it was sure to land in the hands of a beast at least at the 8th Grade of the First Rank. The process would be the same for them but the pain would be much more tolerable for them.

    Akata¡¯s body, however, was only comparable to the 6th Grade of the First Rank. Even the weakest beast in the competition had a body that was a bit stronger than Akata¡¯s.Therefore it could be seen how lacking his body strength was. But Akata knew this, which was why he decided to go through with using this pill.

    ¡®I¡¯ll see these effects through and gain a body comparable to the 10th Grade of the First Rank. I want to reach the pinnacle of strength and to do that I have to have a strong body as well as cultivation level.¡¯ Akata focused his mind on maintaining a calm state. He wanted the pill to do its work as best as it could without any interference from him.

    The Beast Body Pill was extremely powerful for anyone who¡¯s body was under the Second Rank. Therefore it took a whole quarter of the day before the effects started to wear off. Akata breathed a sigh of relief as he scanned his body for the changes it had went through. Although it was still in the First Rank, it had progressed by leaps and bounds.

    ¡®My skin feels as hard as iron and my blood feels as tough as spider¡¯s silk. My internal organs should be as strong as my skin. Overall my body feels really tough. I should be able to become number 1 in the cabins with just my body alone.¡¯ Akata thought to himself.

    He stood up from the bath and went to put his clothes on. All of the substance that was in the bath was fully absorbed into his body. Akata dressed himself quickly and made his way to Tabet. He didn¡¯t notice it but as he was dressing himself, crimson red scales had appeared on his back for a really brief moment. They flashed on his body and disappeared in the next instant.

    Not even Noluck was able to see these crimson scales that had appeared on Akata¡¯s body. Eventually, Akata stood dressed and walked toward Tabet¡¯s room. He felt as if he were brimming with utter power. As if a single breath from him could topple a mountain with ease.

    If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

    ¡°Akata! How did it go? Are you alright? I tried to use my own pill and it was kinda painful to me. I found that the lower your body strength the more pain the pill would cause. It must have been really painful for you.¡± Tabet immediately asked Akata about his experience with the Beast Body Pill. It was actually really painful. Normally, someone at Akata¡¯s level would have been seriously injured or even died from the pain.

    ¡°Ahaha. I¡¯m fine. It was nothing really, just a bit tingly that¡¯s all. I feel much better now though.¡± Akata replied laughingly. ¡°I should have a body comparable to the 8th Grade.¡± Akata also said.

    This was true as breaking through to multiple levels at one time was extremely dangerous. Over time his body would continuously get stronger until it made its way to the 10th Grade. That way the foundation would be stronger and there would be less drawbacks.

    ¡°Mn.¡± Tabet nodded his head. ¡°My grandfather also wants me to give you this Spiritual Growth Pill. Here.¡± Tabet held out his paw and in it could be seen a sparkling purple pill the size of a fingernail. It sparkled brightly and immediately caught Akata¡¯s attention. However, in the next instant he pushed it away.

    ¡°I can¡¯t accept this, it¡¯s too much. You all have already done so much for me and I haven¡¯t really done anything. I don¡¯t even deserve something as precious as this pill for myself. Have your tribe keep it.¡± Akata said as he rejected the pill.

    ¡°No no no. My grandfather specifically said to give this to you no matter what. My tribe already has some of these pills and in the future more of these will be available to use. So this really wouldn¡¯t be that important.¡± Tabet paused for a moment before speaking up once more in a hushed tone.

    ¡°My grandfather, father, and the other leaders of the tribe all want you to have this, not because you saved our lives, but also because¡­¡± He paused once again as if to review what he was about to say. Finally with a sigh he continued on. ¡°Because when it comes to cultivation and insights you are an absolute monster. While only at the 7th Grade and with a weak body such as yours, you¡¯re able to match up against the strongest youth beasts in the Great Aka Tribe. This has really impressed my grandfather and the elders of the tribe. They want to make sure you continue to grow and will remember this kindness in the future.¡± Tabet said as he pushed his paw out further toward Akata.

    Akata looked on helplessly as he saw the pill in Tabet¡¯s hand. Finally, after a long bit of thought, Akata took the pill from Tabet¡¯s hand. ¡®It¡¯s better to take it than not to take it.¡¯ He thought to himself.

    Tabet gave a wide smile as he gestured to Akata to follow him. ¡°Come come. My father wants to meet with you.¡± Akata reluctantly followed along. Inside he was lightly cursing Tabet.

    ¡®They want to use me as a possible pillar to support them in the future? I can see why but is it really necessary to try and win me over with material goods?¡¯ Akata thought to himself. He glanced at the pill in his hand and then put it away into his bag. It didn¡¯t take long before Akata came before Scarlet Runic Lord Tafei, Tabet¡¯s father.

    Akata bowed down slightly and said, ¡°You wish to see me?¡± Even though Akata felt safe around the Scarlet Tiger¡¯s he was still wary of them. Tabet was one thing but the others posed a threat to him. They could plot anything for their own benefit and Akata wouldn¡¯t be able to resist in the slightest. So even though he felt grateful to them, he was still careful when dealing and interacting with them.

    ¡°Mn.¡± Scarlet Runic Lord Tafei nodded his head. ¡°Tabet, would you mind leaving us two alone.¡± He said and watched as Tabet walked away thoughtfully. ¡°It looks as if you have taken our gifts of departure and it also looks as if you are ready to leave at any time. I remember when you first arrived on our island about two months ago. You just suddenly popped out of nowhere and then you changed everything. Now, you¡¯re about to leave.¡± He looked as if he were recalling things of the past and then he sighed.

    ¡°Do you really have to leave? It would be one thing if you stay with us. We could nurture you into a strong warrior and protect you for as long as you need. But once you go back there¡¯s no telling what might happen.¡± Scarlet Runic Lord Tafei looked thoughtfully at Akata for a moment.

    Akata obviously knew what he was hinting at. If he went back to stay with mortals then they would have to become enemies once again. That was because mortals and beasts were natural enemies to begin with. It was also possible that Akata would divulge their secrets and aid the mortals. He may even come back to wipe them out.

    ¡°I do have to go back. I was punished by my sect and banished for two months. I was told to survive and if I did I could go back. Now it is almost time to return. I have no choice in the matter.¡± Akata replied calmly. He knew there was no other way out of this situation. He would have to return eventually and if the sect wanted him back then he couldn¡¯t say no.

    ¡°If it has to be that way then.¡± Scarlet Runic Lord Tafei sighed once again. A look of determination flashed across his face. He stretched out his paw and made a grasping motion toward Akata. Instantly, Akata was hurdled over toward him.

 Chapter 107: Awaiting Departure (3)

    Akata was hurdled toward Scarlet Runic Lord Tafei. In an instant he came to a stop in front of him. He was close enough to feel the powerful pressure emanating off of his body. Akata took in a deep breath and held it.

    ¡°Sorry for this, but I have to get you away from this island. It¡¯s not because we don¡¯t trust you, it¡¯s just that we don¡¯t trust the ones around you. After all, mortals and beasts don¡¯t really get along too well. I¡¯ll be sure to send you to a safe place.¡± With that, Scarlet Runic Lord Tafei stood up and took a step forward.

    That step took him and Akata out of the room. They both vanished from the island in an instant. When they reappeared, all Akata could see with his nature sense was a stretch of ocean.He tried to stretch it out further but that was still all he could see.

    ¡°Again.¡± Scarlet Runic Lord Tafei said with a rather ragged voice. Again he vanished from his location, bringing Akata with him as he did so. When he appeared once again there was still nothing but ocean around. He again teleported some distance away. It took him a total of six teleportations to finally see some land.

    He flew in the direction of the land and stepped onto the coast soon after. He placed Akata down and looked at him with helplessly. ¡°Who knows what the mortals might do when they see a bustling environment of beasts. Even if they don¡¯t do anything, if word were to spread it could be disastrous for us. This is the only thing we can do for now. They might still no where we are but with you here, why would they go to our island?¡±

    Scarlet Runic Lord Tafei sighed and shook his head slightly. Deep in his heart he really didn¡¯t want Akata to leave but he knew that this had to happen.

    ¡°Scarlet Runic Lord Tafei¡­ why didn¡¯t you just let me die back in the competition?¡± Akata wanted to know this answer for a while. They Scarlet Tiger¡¯s risked so much in order to save him. They even went so far as to take on the top three tribes all by themselves. It could easily be seen how much they cared for him.

    ¡°You may not know this but beasts are very loyal creatures unlike mortals. Since you saved our lives it is only right that we save yours when it was in danger. No matter what the price had to be paid in order to do it we would¡¯ve protected it in the end. That¡¯s just our nature.¡± Scarlet Runic Lord Tafei responded without any hesitation.

    Beasts really were the most loyal of people. Having a beast as your friend was like having a dog as your pet. They were unswervingly loyal and would never turn against you. This was a reason why mortals kept some beasts as pets. Of course this led to some dissatisfaction between the two.

    Akata thought for a moment and then nodded his head. He bowed his head down and then said, ¡°I thank you Scarlet Runic Lord Tafei and the whole Scarlet Rune Tribe for saving my life. It was an honor to meet you all and get to experience life with you. I will never forget the kindness you have shown me and the way of life for a beast. It will forever be engraved in my heart and mind.¡± Akata said with a sincere tone.

    Scarlet Runic Lord Tafei smiled happily and said, ¡°No need for thanks. On a more important note, will your sect be able to find you here?¡±

    ¡°Yes. I believe that they will be able to find me easily. There¡¯s no need to worry about that.¡± Akata replied calmly and happily.

    ¡°Mn. Alright then.¡± Then I¡¯ll be off. Do keep safe and I hope that we can meet again. Especially as friends and not enemies.¡± With that Scarlet Runic Lord Tafei took a step forward and vanished from his spot.The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

    His spoke again, his voice echoing into Akata¡¯s ears. ¡°I forgot to tell you that Tabet didn¡¯t want to say goodbye to you. But he will also be happy to see you again some time.That¡¯s it, take care.¡± His voice trailed off in the end and then ultimately vanished. That was it, Akata was finally alone now.

    He stood there waiting. He was waiting for something to happen. Whether that be for his sect to get him or for an event to happen. He didn¡¯t know what would come next so he just stood there for a while thinking of all that had happened.

    Eventually he sat down and started to meditate and strengthen his cultivation bases. His body was strong now but his cultivation bases were lacking in comparison. With the addition of his plant cultivation base he would now cultivate much more slower than other people. But, he would also be much more powerful than others at the same level.

    Soon, it was nighttime and the wind was whirling viciously about. It whipped back and forth arousing Akata from his meditations. He spread his nature sense out in search of somewhere to shield himself from it,

    ¡®This wind is just too strong! And it seems to be getting even stronger as well. I have to find a place to stay right now.¡¯ Akata thought to himself with surprise. This wind was really absurdly strong tonight. It pushed against him and even with his tough body he ended up with some scrapes. It was almost like this wind was some kind of fierce tribulation for him.

    He stood up and dashed to the nearest safe place he could find with his nature sense. It was a small hole in a hill. Sort of like a cave but too small to actually be considered one. Akata huddled himself in there and waited for the wind to calm down.

    Off in the distance, however, there was a fierce battle going on between two people. Both of them looked to be middle aged men. One man wore a sparkling astral robe and had long black hair. His eyes showed with a neon light.

    The other wore red furs and had scarlet red hair that was bright in the night sky. Both of these two were going at it, but it was clear that the man in red was falling back continuously.

    ¡®Dammit! To think the Meteor Wolf Star Tribe would actually send Duke Star Alpha to assassinate Akata.¡¯ Scarlet Runic Lord Tafei cursed as he fought with wild abandon. His own cultivation level was at the 8th Grade of the Beast Rank while his opponent was at the 9th Grade. Although it was only 1 level of difference, that difference brought along a huge difference in strength.

    ¡°Just let me through and I can spare your life Tafei!¡± Duke Star Alpha yelled out savagely. ¡°There¡¯s no reason to make this more difficult than it has to be.¡±

    ¡°Hahaha!¡± Scarlet Runic Lord Tafei laughed coldly. ¡°I will die before you lay your hands on Akata.¡± He replied equally as cold.

    ¡°So be it then.¡± Duke Star Alpha charged at Scarlet Runic Lord Tafei. They exchanged a series of blows that shook the surrounding ocean waters. Each blow creating a ferocious wind that swept out into the surrounding area. These were winds generated by experts at the top of the Beast Rank. Capable of immediately disintegrating people with a low cultivation base or weak body.

    Scarlet Runic Lord Tafei knew that their battle could potentially harm Akata but he couldn¡¯t hold back his blows otherwise he could be injured himself, then Duke Star Alpha would break lose and charge toward Akata. That would be much worse than letting Akata sustain some injuries.

    Luckily, however, Akata was a good distance away from the battle and he had a tougher body. Otherwise he would have long been shredded into pieces by the strong shocks and wind from the two¡¯s battle.

    Meanwhile, Akata was inside of the small cave focusing on protecting his body. After a while he noticed something about the wind. ¡®This wind contains some wisps of power in them. I can probably use this to strengthen myself.¡¯ Akata¡¯s eyes showed with a bright light as he rotated his crimson rune.

    By now, Akata had figured out that his crimson rune wasn¡¯t as simple as he originally thought it to be. At first he thought that it could only be used to absorb the blood of enemies and strengthen himself. But as time went on and he used it for more and different things, he found that that wasn¡¯t the only use for it.

    ¡®This crimson rune can basically absorb all types of energies and use them for my advantage. So with it, I should be able to absorb the energy within this wind to strengthen myself a bit.¡¯ He thought to himself.

    Crimson light emanated out of his body and lit up the small hole he was in. It was bright in the otherwise dark environment he was in. Without his nature sense he wouldn¡¯t be able to see but with this crimson light, everything was illuminated as if the sun was out.

    Akata sucked in a deep breath and focused on attuning to the energy within the wind. ¡®This crimson rune can absorb and refine energy. Like it does with blood and with life force. I should be able to do it with this energy.¡¯ After a bit of time Akata¡¯s eyes sprang open and they were a dazzling crimson color.

    His crimson rune rotated vigorously and soon, the wind started to be drawn to it. The wind went toward his body but this time it didn¡¯t harm him but was absorbed into it and then into the rune. Akata could feel the dispersed energy in the wind gradually build up as more and more accumulated within him.

    A warm smile crept upon his face.

 Chapter 108: Natures Blessing

    ¡°IT¡¯S WORKING!¡± Akata nearly cried out as he absorbed the bits of energy in the powerful wind. ¡®This crimson rune is really strange. Not only can it absorb blood and life force to strengthen myself, it can even absorb this energy. This energy feels odd but I¡¯m sure I have come into contact with it before.¡¯

    The weird energy was swept toward Akata¡¯s crimson rune where it was refined and then dispersed throughout his body. Some of the energy went to his skin and bones to strengthen his body, some went to his dantion region to strengthen his cultivation bases, some went to his strengthen his soul, and some went to head to strengthen his mental energy.

    This was usually how the refined energy of the crimson rune dispersed energy except this time it was much stronger than blood and less stronger than the life force. If the energy within the wind was more dense it would be much more beneficial to Akata, alas it was dispersed all throughout the wind causing much of the energy to be faded.

    Akata slowly absorbed the energy and watched it flow throughout the different parts of his body. As he did he raised an eyebrow after noticing something strange. ¡®There¡¯s more energy going to my dantion region than the rest of my body.¡¯ He wouldn¡¯t have found this strange at first because he had two different cultivation bases so he thought they would need more energy. But then he noticed that half of the energy going in the dantion wasn¡¯t going to his cultivation bases.

    ¡°Eh? What¡¯s this?¡± Akata slightly spoke out as he watched the flow of energy in his dantion region. He could see half of the energy forming a sort of vortex on the island where his cultivation bases resided. It was hard to make out what was forming within the vortex but as more energy was drawn in, he could see a small illusory white pellet. Just when Akata was about to physically direct some of the energy toward the vortex, the wind suddenly stopped.

    Frowning, Akata sent out his nature sense. ¡®It really did stop.¡¯ Akata couldn¡¯t help but sigh to himself upon this realization. This was a good fortune for him and he was curious about what that pellet was. ¡®I have to find a way to fully form that pellet. I feel as if it could help me in the future.¡¯

    Sighing again Akata walked out of the small cave he was in. It was beginning to brighten up as the sun rose from the horizon. Akata could feel its warmth spread all over his body bringing him a sense of relaxation. After a few breaths of time, Akata let out a relieving ¡°Ahh.¡± and then went to go find a place to meditate.

    He spread his nature sense out and then his brows furrowed. Through his nature sense he found that a lot of the vegetation had been uprooted and destroyed. Seeing this, Akata couldn¡¯t help but become sad. He had a much closer relationship with plants and nature now that he had a plant cultivation base. He could feel the will and emotions of the surrounding plants through his nature sense when it washed over them.

    Through these emotions, he felt pity and sympathy for the surrounding plants. He spread his nature sense out further to encompass the whole island. It was only a small sized island about 100 meters so it was rather easy to do. Then he waved his hand as multiple aqua colored runes appeared to cover over the whole island. This rune was composed of the Inner Element of Healing.

    Taking a deep breath he caused the runes to shine out with a bright aqua light. The whole island looked to be aqua in color. ¡®This healing rune isn¡¯t going to be enough, I need something to fundamentally repair these plants.¡¯ Akata thought to himself.The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

    ¡°If you want to save these plants then there is only one way to do it.¡± Noluck suddenly spoke out in a disinterested voice. ¡°This happens to all true plant cultivators. When you have a low plant cultivation base, there is something that makes you want to save every single plant. Only when you have a higher cultivation will this urge to save them subside.

    It is like this because we are few in number so we have to do everything we can to make sure we can have a chance to grow and improve. Once we are strong enough, we basically have the ability to save forests with a wave of our hands, to say nothing of this small place.¡±

    He collected his thoughts and then spoke out once more. ¡°But at a low level, you aren¡¯t able to do that so we have to use a different way to save plants. Here. Take this and use it.¡± A bright green light shot out from Noluck and into Akata¡¯s forehead. A flood of information entered his mind, they were all ways to save plants given your cultivation level.

    Akata let out a gasp and then focused on the information pertaining to his cultivation level. Looking at the instructions, Akata frowned slightly and had a look of disappointment. ¡°Is this really the only way?¡± He asked.

    Noluck just calmly said, ¡°You don¡¯t really have the power to do anything else. That is the only way for you to save them right now.¡±

    Akata let out a sigh and nodded his head. Raising his hand into the air, Akata rotated his plant cultivation base and used it to cut up the uprooted plants. He separated the roots from the plants. He waved it again and caused the destroyed plants to break down into fertilizer. The seeds from those destroyed plants raised in the air and then shot back down into the ground.

    This was the way shown to save the plants. It was basically just to start all over. Have the roots grow new stems and then plants, take whatever seeds there are and plant them into the ground, and take the destroyed plants and turn them into fertilizer for the new roots and seeds.

    Akata sighed and then made multiple huge blue runes appear. He caused a shower of water to rain down onto the seeds and roots to help them grow. With that a sort of smile went across his face. This was all he could do at the moment but he felt as if he had helped out. Suddenly the urge to get stronger washed over him. He wanted to get stronger so that he could properly save the plants in the future.

    Along with that feeling another thing happened to Akata. A golden mist came out of nowhere and enveloped his whole body. Akata was surprised at first but then accepted it. It wasn¡¯t harming him at all, just nurturing him.

    When the golden mist subsided and disappeared Akata could be seen and this time he had a change to his body. There was a blade of grass where his previous arm had been. It was a thick green blade of grass with a golden streak across it.

    As soon as the mist disappeared Akata had took notice to this and was surprised. ¡°Ahh!¡± He yelled out and tried to pull it off. But he soon found that as he did so he could feel his hand pulling on the blade of grass. ¡°Wha¡­ What is this?¡± Almost as soon as the words came out of his mouth he realized something else. "I... I... I can see again?!" He said, his voice full of astonishment.

    ¡°That was a blessing from nature. You see, nature favors us plants. It especially loves plant cultivators. It specifically gave birth to us plants so it would try its best to help us out. When we help other plants nature would give us blessings from time to time. That is why it is encouraged to help out your fellow plants that have yet to transcend into the Plant Realm.

    The more often you help plants the more likely the blessing from nature will come, with each new blessing being greater than the last. This is your first time helping plants so it came to you, next time it probably won¡¯t but who knows. It¡¯s random.¡±

    Akata nodded his head and was about to sit down when he suddenly saw a figure in front of him. It was a figure dressed in brown furs and looked to be in his mid twenties. He held up his arm and then took a drink of alcohol from his flagon.

    ¡°Fourth Elder.¡± Akata bowed down and greeted the person in front of him. It had been Fourth Elder who had accompanied him to this place, now it would be Fourth Elder who took him out. Akata was relieved with joy.

    Fourth Elder looked deeply at Akata for a long moment as if confirming the things he saw. Then after some time he started saying something. ¡°Don¡¯t be too happy. Once you get back to the sect, we have to prepare for war.¡±

    Akata¡¯s joy stopped and he looked as if his life were drained from him. ¡°Pre¡­ prepare for¡­ war?¡± With that he and Fourth Elder vanished from the island.

 Chapter 109: Back To The Sect

    Great Aka Tribe, Scarlet Rune Palace

    ¡°Scarlet Runic Lord!¡± A trembling concerned voice rang out. ¡°What happened to you?! You must come quickly to get treated, hurry now!¡± Lawou urgently said to Scarlet Runic Lord Tafei.

    He was laying on the ground in the palace walls. Blood covered him everywhere but he had a smile on his face. He didn¡¯t seem to hear Lawou urging him as he let out a hearty laugh that was filled with infinite joy. It had been a long while since he had laughed this hard. His laughter carried throughout the palace and entered the ears of many of the beasts present.

    ¡°That scum of a dog Star Duke Alpha failed haha! Akata got away safely and he didn¡¯t even get to see a hair on his head let alone touch it. HAHAHA!¡± Scarlet Runic Lord Tafei laughed loudly and without reserve.

    After laughing for a bit he coughed up a mouthful of blood and sank into a deep sleep. Lawou looked at him deeply before hurriedly picking him up and carrying him to to get treated. After that she reported what she had heard and saw directly to Golden Runic Lord Taple.

    He sat in his throne, which was just a comfy bed of leaves, mud, and other things, and thought deeply. Suddenly he let out a hearty laugh as well. ¡°So they weren¡¯t able to get their hands on Akata after all haha, excellent. It seems my son was able to carry out this mission well and come back in one piece. He definitely deserves to be rewarded heavily.

    That Meteor Wolf Star Tribe sure is daring however. But, they are apart of our tribe and a powerful force as well. If they can put this matter behind us then I will do the same naturally. I will personally let Tabet know what has happened and I will go see Tafei soon. Thank you Lawou.¡± With that Golden Runic Lord Taple stood up and then vanished from his position.

    Meteor Wolf Star Tribe

    ¡°So he ended up getting away then? Humph. No matter. We can pursue him in secret, there¡¯s no need to make this a public matter any longer. I¡¯m sure that Taple will be looking for us to let his issue go and leave it in the past, so we will make it seem that way.¡±

    Star Sovereign Allica looked coldly at Duke Star Alpha and then waved him off. He left obediently and didn¡¯t look back at all.

    ¡°Azalica.¡± She spoke coldly. Soon a wolf walked in that was slender and had smooth fur running along its back. Its claws were a jade white and looked as bright as the moonlight. ¡°I want you to search for that mortal Akata and keep track of him. When the time is right bring him back to me, dead or alive, your choice. Make sure that none of your movements are followed and keep this a secret. I have some need of his body and I don¡¯t want information spread.¡±

    ¡°Yes Star Sovereign Allica.¡± was the simple reply from the young looking Star Wolf. With a flash of neon light the wolf turned into a beautiful looking maiden with white robes. Her eyes sparkled and her features would cause any man to salivate with lust.

    Star Sovereign Allica waved her paw and then caused Azalica to disappear from the spot she had been standing in. She gave a cold snort and continued to sit there.This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

    Red Cloud Sect, Red Cloud Hall

    Akata and Fourth Elder appeared within Red Cloud Hall together in a flash. Akata took in a deep breath and looked around with glinting eyes. ¡®I¡¯m back.¡¯ He mused to himself. It had only been two months but to a 13 year old child that felt like a long time. He felt much more mature now that he was back, as if he could teach others about the outside world and his experiences.

    As he was going through these thoughts he was interrupted by an abrupt voice. ¡°Akata.¡± This voice sounded very familiar to Akata and he spun around and greeted the person who spoke. ¡°Sect Leader.¡± He said as he was bowing down.

    She looked him over and said, ¡°I¡¯m sure you have had many experiences while being away from the sect and it seems as if you have grown a lot as well. But now is not the time to be discussing your little trip. We must prepare for an upcoming war between us and various other clans and sects.¡± She said with slight indifference.

    Akata¡¯s eyes went wide. Fourth Elder had mentioned a war but he didn¡¯t go into any sort of detail. But what Sect Leader Fu had just said made it seem as if the Red Cloud Sect would be going in alone against different clans and sects.

    Just what was the Red Cloud Sect? It was mysterious sure, but by no means was it considerably strong. Akata realized this on his trip to the island and meeting the various beasts. Any random beast could cause huge problems for the disciples of the sect. They were just too weak when compared to others.

    ¡°Excuse me, but¡­ how are we supposed to stand up to multiple forces by ourselves?¡± Akata couldn¡¯t help but ask. He was truly concerned for the Red Cloud Sect and its safety. He knew that the disciples weren¡¯t that strong here. He alone could probably beat all of the disciples with ease, let alone whole clans and sects.

    ¡°We naturally have a way to fight against others. You shouldn¡¯t concern yourself about those matters now and should prepare for the war.¡± She lifted her hand and a light flashed toward Akata and sank into his forehead. A wave of information entered regarding a divine ability.

    ¡°This is a divine ability that I¡¯m having all of the disciples and Elders learn in order to be ready to battle. You should spend the next few days becoming accustomed to it and be ready to use it.¡± She waved at Akata as if gesturing him to leave.

    ¡°But¡­¡± before he could even say anymore, Sect Leader Fu waved her hand once more and caused him to disappear. When he reappeared he was inside of his own room. He closed his mouth and sighed. He had grown used to being teleported away against his will by now.

    He looked around his room to see all of the familiar things that were insignificant to him in the past. His room was broken down and looked abandoned. The only color besides gray that existed was the red bedsheet that he had.

    Akata walked over to his bed and sat down. As usual the bed made a strong creaking sound as if it might collapse at any moment if he moved any further. He rubbed his hand over the red bedsheet, this was something that comforted him throughout his life. It wasn¡¯t exactly soft but made him feel warm and cozy whenever he laid on it. This sheet had been with him for as long as he could remember.

    After a bit of reminiscing, Akata¡¯s face filled with determination. ¡®I will protect this sect if it¡¯s the last thing that I do!¡¯ He began to study the divine ability that Sect Leader Fu had passed on to him.

    ¡®Red Cloud Formation. An ability that manifests the will into overwhelming power. It uses the mind as the core and the body as the support. The mind is used to power this divine ability so a strong mental energy is needed to get the full effect. The body is needed to guide all the power produced from the divine ability. It is guided through the organs, blood, limbs, skin, and bones. Everything is essential in making this work perfectly.¡¯

    Akata reviewed the divine ability but didn¡¯t start to immediately train in it. He first settled his mind and collected his thoughts. Everything was moving too fast for him at the moment. In just two months he fought a disciple in a death match, had been punished and kicked out of his sect temporarily, came into contact with powerful beasts and was attacked on numerous occasions, then after coming back home found out that a war was coming. He really had to clear his head right now.

    He walked out of his dorm room and then decided to stroll around the sect. It had seemed like forever since he had done this. He came to see many familiar faces and they were shocked to see him. They chatted with him for a bit and Akata steadily became aware of another upcoming event.

    ¡®It seems that everyone knows that a war is coming and it looks as if they are prepared. Not only that but many people have had tremendous breakthroughs recently. I¡¯ve even seen a few 5th Grade disciples walking around. They aren¡¯t even talking about the war, however, but the upcoming Body Spirit Exam and Red Cloud Sparring Day.¡¯

    After walking around Akata came to know that there had been a lot of changes in the two months that he had been away. These changes weren¡¯t minor either but really huge that basically changed all of how the Red Cloud Sect was. These changes made the title of ¡°mysterious¡± really fit.

 Chapter 110: Qualifications Of A General

    Training Field

    In the Training Field of the Red Cloud Sect, Akata stood there looking at the scene. The Cabins were still there but they weren¡¯t how they used to be. No longer were they places that housed the strongest people in the sect, but were places that held trials to strengthen everyone in the sect. There were 9 different trials for people and each trial had a list of ten people who did the best.

    As soon as Akata stepped onto the training field he could see many people challenging these trials in an attempt to get a better score. Apparently, these trials transported you to different places. Some disciples came out of the Cabin Trials wet, others had their clothes scorched, and others simply looked shaken.

    That wasn¡¯t all there was to it however, as in the middle of the field, where the tower had been, there was a new building. It seemed to be made of three levels and were also a trial. This one was different as only a few people were around the building, showing that only certain people were capable of participating in the trial.

    The Training Field was extremely busy for once and it was hard to talk to people. They seemed to be really focused on increasing their strength. Luckily, however, Akata managed to find someone he was familiar with.

    ¡°Ah! Fang Zuwa! It¡¯s so nice to see you!¡± Akata yelled out. As he was yelling he made his way to the familiar figure.

    It was a boy with a gray robe on. He looked to be 15-16 years old and had handsome features. When he turned around to see who was calling his name one could see his deep blue eyes, but that was it, as the rest of his face was covered up by a cloth.

    When he saw who was approaching him, his eyes went wide with disbelief and he subconsciously gaped. ¡°Akata? Is that you? What happened to your arm?¡± He called as he strode forward with shock.

    ¡°Just had a little accident that''s all. Anyways, it¡¯s been two months already. It¡¯s nice to see you.¡± Akata said with a light laugh.

    Seeing how Akata avoided the topic so did Fang Zuwa. ¡°Same to you. You¡¯ve grown a lot in these two months. I heard that you were punished by being kicked out for two months. I didn¡¯t know you would be back today. There¡¯s a lot that has happened while you were away.¡± Fang Zuwa laughed as well as he clasped Akata on the back.

    ¡°I was hoping you could tell me about it. I just got back not to long ago and all of this is new to me. Not only has the sect changed, even the disciples have. It¡¯s like this is a whole new place to me. Even you. Just two months ago you were at the 2nd Grade but now you¡¯re at the mid 6th Grade. You¡¯ve almost broken through to the peak 6th Grade.¡± Akata said with a sigh.

    ¡°Hehe. That¡¯s nothing compared to you. I don¡¯t even know what your cultivation base is, so that means it¡¯s higher than mine. Not just your cultivation base, but also your body strength seems strong as well. Just your mere presence is pressuring me.¡± Fang Zuwa humbly said.

    ¡°But anyways, the sect has been changing a lot to prepare us for the incoming war. At first when we heard about it, we were all discouraged and a lot of us thought about leaving. Although we didn¡¯t know where we would go, it would be better than staying here and getting killed in a war.¡± Fang Zuwa seemed to be reminiscing about that time as he told the story to Akata.Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more.

    ¡°Then, the Sect Leader personally came out and told us that there was nothing to fear. She would help us to grow more powerful than we could have ever imagined. I don¡¯t know what it was but when she spoke, every word that came out sounded more like a fact than a wish. Naturally, we all believed in her, even the Elders.

    From then on, the sect went through many many changes. No longer were there any cabins showing rank, but instead, Cabin Trials that would help all of us grow much more powerful. For those of us that fly through the Cabin Trials there is the Tower of Clouds. It has three levels that, if you complete one, you will undoubtedly become much stronger.

    All of the people who are capable of challenging the Tower of Clouds are at least at the 7th Grade or capable of battling people in that Grade. Elder¡¯s have participated in it too and some of them broke through to the Earthen Rank because of it. I need to hurry up and get stronger so that I can participate in it.¡± Fang Zuwa said through gritted teeth.

    He soon calmed down and then regained his composure. ¡°But other than that, the Cabin Trials are a great way to increase in strength too. It even brought me to the 6th Grade in the first place. I didn¡¯t think I would ever get this strong. Especially this soon.¡± He laughed. You should find time to do some of the trials, if not all of them. Each one focuses on a different aspect meant to strengthen you. If you get into the top ten of one of them you will get an amazing prize that will help you to grow. I even made it into some of the top ten in some of the trials.¡±

    Akata looked at him with thoughtful eyes. Obviously he was going to have a look at the trials but there was another thing on his mind. ¡°Why is everyone anticipating the Body Spirit Exam and the Red Cloud Sparring Day? Shouldn¡¯t everyone be training for the war?¡± Everything just seemed to relaxing as of now.

    ¡°Oh that.¡± A wicked smile appeared on Fang Zuwa¡¯s face. ¡°The Sect Leader told us that the generals on our side will be given very special power and command over our side.¡±

    ¡°What does that have to do with the Exam and Sparring Day? Does that mean those who perform well get to be right under the generals and also get a special reward?¡± Akata asked confusingly.

    ¡°Hahaha! No! Those who perform well become generals of our army! I had the same thoughts as you. I thought that the Elder¡¯s would be the generals, but no. They have a different task so the part of general will be given to us. There are nine spots for a general but to become one there are a number of qualifications. For one you need to perform well in the Exam and on Sparring Day. We don¡¯t know how well we have to perform so everyone is just hoping to do their absolute best.

    Other than the Body Spirit Exam and Red Cloud Sparring Day, you need to have at least been in the top ten of at least three different Cabin Trials. That¡¯s just for show though, powerwise you need a cultivation level of at least the 6th Grade, be able to handle at least ten different opponents on your same level, and withstand three attacks from someone who is two levels higher than you. That¡¯s just qualifying for the position however, as you still have to show that you can lead a squad of your own.

    Of course, generals need to be able to control the battlefield so they have to have great power. To be considered a general you would already be outclassing a lot of people. But if you are chosen as one, then the sect will make sure that you are even more of a monster. That is why everyone is trying to get as strong as possible to have a chance at becoming one.

    Most of the people who have no chance, however, simply curry favor to those who do have one. That way they will still be in a good position. Although I¡¯m not strong enough to make it to the Tower of Clouds right now, I still have a chance of becoming a general. There are only 14 disciples who have made it to the Tower of Clouds. They are probably going to be generals but that doesn¡¯t guarantee that they will chosen to be one. I¡¯m hoping to take one of those spots. I¡¯m sure you can take one as well.¡±

    Akata¡¯s eyes and face flashed with complete understanding now. It all made sense now. Although he didn¡¯t know how the disciples grew so fast, considering how the sect was riddled with mystery, it was possible. Right now he put all that to the back of his mind as he thought about what to do for himself.

    Should he work hard to become a general of the army? The general would have special command over entire squadrons and lead in the battle. To become a general one would need outstanding results in the Body Spirit Exam and on Red Cloud Sparring Day. Not only that but you need to be able at the 6th Grade as well as a number of things.The qualifications alone made it so that you had to be a monster on your level. Considering the qualifications, there wouldn¡¯t be much competition but everyone would undoubtedly be giving it their all.

    The other option was to be a lowkey soldier of the army. It wouldn¡¯t cause that much trouble and it would be much much more simpler and easier. But obviously Akata wouldn¡¯t choose this option. He wanted to put his power to the test.

 Chapter 111: Red Cloud Formation

    ¡°Thanks Fang Zuwa.¡± Akata said while smiling beamingly.

    Fang Zuwa smiled while thinking to himself, ¡®Crap! I just created a new opponent for myself. Now it¡¯ll be harder for me to become a general.¡¯ He let out an inner sigh and said, ¡°No problem happy to help anytime. By the way, what level is your cultivation at?¡±

    ¡°Just the 7th Grade.¡± Akata replied without hesitation. He wasn¡¯t that much higher than Fang Zuwa himself and from the sound of things there was sure to be others who had a higher cultivation base than he did.

    ¡°Oh! Alright then.¡± Fang Zuwa said. ¡°Well I¡¯m going to get back to training now. I¡¯ll probably see you at the Body Spirit Exam.¡± With that he walked away. ¡®Whew. He¡¯s not that much higher than me. I still have a chance to make it there.¡¯ He mused to himself.

    Akata watched as Fang Zuwa walked away. After he disappeared into one of the trials Akata thought to himself, ¡®Should I start with doing the trials right away? Or should I work on comprehending the Red Cloud Formation divine ability?¡¯ After a moment he came to a decision. ¡®An extra divine ability would make fighting much easier and it will make becoming a general simpler as well. I¡¯ll focus on the divine ability for now.¡¯

    Akata retreated back to his own dorm room and sat atop his bed. He began to study the Red Cloud Formation technique that was given to him. As he did, he became astounded by it. It was simply a beautiful technique with countless ways of using it. It could essentially turn the body into a formation to be used for many different things that you could think of. And that was just the Outer section of the technique.

    ¡°There are 3 different sections that make up this ability. The Outer, Inner, and Core sections. They become much more complex the deeper your understanding is of the ability. But once you master it, you¡¯ll be able to do basically anything with your body. I could even become a three-headed six-armed giant if I wanted.¡± Akata said with amazement.

    ¡°What? Let me take a look at this ability. I¡¯ve heard of abilities that allow you to change your body but not one to this extent.¡± Noluck said with curiosity.

    ¡°I don¡¯t think so. I didn¡¯t get permission to show you is what I¡¯m saying.¡± Akata tried to sound as innocent as he possibly could. Even taking it so far as to stick out his tongue.

    ¡°Humph. Whatever. I¡¯m sure it¡¯s inferior to my own techniques anyways.¡± Noluck said, trying to sound as disinterested as he could manage at the moment.

    Akata shook his head and laughed a bit and then focused his attention back on the divine ability. ¡°Let¡¯s start with the Outer section first.¡± He carefully read the parts of the Outer section and began to comprehend it. The concept of the ability was a fairly simple one. Given Akata¡¯s monster level comprehension and mental strength, this was no task for him at all.

    ¡°The mind is the core of the formation. Just as your body moves based on the will and intent of your mind, the formation will move based on the same principles. It is controlled like how I control my body. Just use my mental strength and will to guide the energy of the formation and it will naturally work. The mind is the core and the body is the parts.¡±

    Akata took in a deep breath as a faint red mist poured from his skin. This red mist was a sign showing that one had fully comprehended the first part of the divine ability. Akata willed it and the red mist slowly flew out in front of him toward a bottle on a shelf. It picked the bottle up and then brought it over to Akata.Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.

    A smile appeared on his face. ¡°Success. But this first part seems weak. It does have its uses, but it won¡¯t be much on the battlefield. Time to go to the second part.¡± Akata brought the red mist back to him and it was absorbed into his skin where it disappeared. He then immediately began to read through the second part.

    ¡°The blood, organs, bones, muscles, and skin all make up the body. Each part is essential in making the body function properly. Whether that be for stabilization, movement, or simply living, these parts are crucial for the body. Only when one can continuously be aware of their existence and use can one properly see how much work is needed to function the body. The mind subconsciously keeps these parts working but one needs to consciously direct orders to these parts to fully put them to use.

    A strong mind and will that controls these parts is what is needed to create a powerful functioning body. The ultimate body and ultimate mind will create a symbiosis. The mind and body will become one and work like never before. Seeking to help each other out, in turn making the mind and the body much more powerful.¡± Akata spoke what he had comprehended from the second part of the divine ability.

    Instantly, parts of Akata¡¯s body turned into a red mist. First it was his skin, then his muscles, then his bones, all the way until his whole body was misty. The only thing that wasn¡¯t made of red mist was the blade of grass he had for an arm. The vague outline of his body was still there but he was entirely made of red mist. He stood up in mist form and reached out. His mist hand became much more bigger as if more and more mist was being added to it. It soon became the size of his bed and yet showed no signs of slowing down.

    Even after this, Akata frowned slightly. He looked at his other arm where the blade of grass was. ¡°This ability is best used if you¡¯re familiar with your own body. But I¡¯m not at all familiar with plants. This blade of grass feels really foreign to me now.¡± As he was comprehending the ability, Akata was able to feel a deeper connection to the rest of his body. But was unable to feel anything out of the blade of grass. It was as if it weren¡¯t even there.

    ¡°I have to find a way to get this blade of grass to reach the Inner level as well. Otherwise this will bring a huge disadvantage for me. In fact, I won¡¯t be able to train in the Core section of this ability if I¡¯m not able to get this blade of grass to reach the Inner level.¡± Akata sighed to himself.

    He could already feel the potential of this technique and it made him feel much more anticipation. But alas, his arm was holding him back. He could only sigh at himself however, this was his fault after all.

    Suddenly a voice popped into his head, awakening him from his thoughts.

    ¡°If you¡¯re able to fully comprehend the Red Cloud Formation then you can qualify to join the Cloud Corps. It¡¯s a group that will take on special missions during the war and work independently from the army. Also, each member has to be at least at the 6th Grade and be in the top ten of at least two Cabin Trials. There are a number of other qualities that are needed but those will be explained if you choose you want to try and join. And there will be two leaders for this group. Those two leaders will be given the same status as a general.¡±

    ¡°Cloud Corps? Sect Leader, what does this group do? What kind of missions?¡± Akata instantly recognized the voice and asked.

    ¡°You can find out if you join the Cloud Corps. If you comprehend all of the Red Cloud Formation then you can try out for the Cloud Corps. If you don¡¯t comprehend all of it, then don¡¯t bother asking questions.¡±

    ¡°But Sect Leader, how am I supposed to fully train in it if I don¡¯t have my regular arm?¡± Akata asked. It was clear that he wanted to train in it but he didn¡¯t know how to.

    After he asked his question he was met with silence. After some time another voice rang out into his head. ¡°Come see me about that.¡± It was obviously the voice of Second Elder who spoke to him. After she spoke, a light sprang up around Akata and he was forcefully teleported in front of Second Elder.

    They were standing in the Red Cloud Hall but the Sect Leader was nowhere to be found. Akata looked at Second Elder and then bowed his head. ¡°Second Elder.¡± He said respectfully.

    ¡°Mn.¡± She nodded her head slightly. ¡°Now let me see that arm of yours.¡±

    Akata raised his grass arm and extended it out in front of Second Elder. She looked at it closely and even flashed a few incantation gestures. Sometimes her face was concerned, other times it looked thoughtful. Akata wasn¡¯t able to guess anything from her.

    Finally she spoke up. ¡°Maybe this will help.¡± She tapped on the blade of grass and it immediately caused a reaction to occur. It began to bulge out and looked as if it were inflating. It became buffer and at the end of the blade of grass broke off into five different parts.

    As the transformation occurred, Akata was gradually able to guess at what was happening. She wasn¡¯t turning the blade of grass into a new arm, she was making it look like a new arm. Sure it was green and had a golden streak on it, but now it felt a bit closer to Akata then it had been.

 Chapter 112: Core Section

    ¡°This is all I can do. Since nature bestowed this upon you then I won¡¯t be able to change it back. Only you can do that when you¡¯re strong enough. For now, try to get adjusted to it as much as possible and learn to get closer to plants and nature. Even if you didn¡¯t have to worry about this arm it would still be a wise choice.¡± Second Elder said frowning at first.

    ¡°Why can¡¯t you change it back?¡± Akata asked begrudgingly.

    ¡°Nature is a universal power. It is omnipresent and, while not omnipotent, it is close to it. I myself am nowhere near that level so I can¡¯t just change it. Only when you are strong enough to change it yourself can it be done. At that point, nature will see that you can take care of yourself and will allow for you to change it. But until then, you will probably have this as a replacement.¡±

    ¡°I see. Any idea on how I can become familiar enough with this so I can use the last level of the Red Cloud Formation ability?¡± Akata asked.

    ¡°Humph. You¡¯ll have to figure that out on your own. You can go now.¡± Akata looked up sharply to see that the Sect Leader was seated on her throne now. He didn¡¯t know when she had gotten there but as soon as her voice ended, light sprang around him as he was forcefully teleported away.

    He reappeared in his dorm room once more. He sat there thinking of what to do as of now. He couldn¡¯t proceed with comprehending the last part of the Red Cloud Formation until he became familiar with this grass arm.

    He sighed to himself and thought. He wanted to get this done as fast as possible so that he could have more time to challenge the various trials. While his comprehension speed could be seen as monstrously fast, he still look half a day to contemplate the first two parts of the Red Cloud Formation ability. This would be seen as absurdly talented by others but to Akata it was still slow.

    Suddenly his face filled with determination. ¡°This grass arm is still apart of me. Just because it is made of something different doesn¡¯t mean anything. It is still connected to my body and operates just like it.¡± He willed it and began to slowly move his grass arm.

    Slowly but surely it began to move. He curled his fingers up and began to wiggle them around. Then he balled them up into a fist. ¡°So what if it is made out of grass? The Red Cloud Formation ability calls for one to know their own body perfectly inside and out.¡± Willing his mind to explore his new arm he began to thoroughly study it. He looked closely at everything about his arm from its veins to its cells. How sturdy it was, how green it was, what it could pick up, where its joints were.

    Like this, Akata slowly imprinted all of this information into his mind. He became extremely aware of this arms limitations and benefits. He found out that instead of blood running through its veins it was water. There was something that converted his blood to water when it passed to his grass arm and converted it back to blood when it returned to the rest of his body.

    In a short amount of time, he slowly began to understand this grass arm of his and in turn began to understand nature itself. It thrived in sunlight and water. The more sunlight that showed on it the stronger it would be. This arm had the potential to grow stronger than Akata¡¯s other arm if he treated it right.This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

    Even after all of this however, his arm still felt a bit unfamiliar. It was only a bit but that was a difference that would keep him from fully understanding the Red Cloud Formation ability. Akata didn¡¯t give up but instead kept working on familiarizing himself. Now, instead of just focusing on his arm, he began to focus on his cultivation base.

    During this time, Akata realized something else. ¡°My mortal cultivation base is extremely familiar to me but my plant cultivation base still feels strange. Maybe it¡¯s because it never really had anything to connect to. But now it has my arm.¡± Akata spoke out.

    He rotated his plant cultivation base and willed it to strengthen his arm. Instantly a change started to happen. The golden streak on his arm started to brighten and shine out. It began to grow wider and cover over his whole arm. Soon, his whole grass arm was golden in color and shining radiantly. That wasn¡¯t all though as his arm became much more resilient and a vine appeared around it. The vine was golden in color and became longer and thicker.

    Akata was amazed at this. He also felt that he was close to this vine and his arm. He felt a special connection to them. He could feel the existence of the vine and the vine could feel the existence of him. In turn it made a resonance that sparked a thought in Akata¡¯s mind.

    ¡®Just like I am a mortal, I am also a plant now. This grass arm isn¡¯t just an extension of myself, it is me. It will grow with me and I will grow with it. We are one and the same and therefore we can be seen as one thing.¡¯ Akata¡¯s eyes flashed with understanding as the last bit needed was finally completed.

    Instantly a surge of red mist covered Akata¡¯s body. Then his body turned into a red mist as well. It swirled around in a vortex faster and faster. Akata could feel himself as the vortex, just swirling. He felt free, as if he was in control of everything about himself. It was a type of control that filled one with utter confidence in themselves.

    The vortex slowed down and then settled into the shape of Akata¡¯s body. His features became visible again and he slowly stood up. ¡°Just as a cloud can change its shape, size, and density so can I. Just like a formation can expand great distances and never be broken so can I. I am a cloud and a formation. My body can expand and grow and not be hindered by normal means again.¡± Akata smiled.

    The Outer section of the Red Cloud Formation ability made a red mist that could be controlled like a limb. It was simple to use and pretty much everybody in the sect had comprehended it.

    The Inner section of the Red Cloud Formation was a bit trickier to understand. It called for one to know their body inside and out. In turn, their body could become like a cloud. Although it was a cloud it still had to be together otherwise the true body would break and fall apart and you would die from dismemberment.

    The Core section of the Red Cloud Formation however, completely bypassed this flaw. One could freely control their body and move as they wanted to. One needed to fully understand themselves and their whole body in order for this to work, just like one needed to fully understand a formation in order to change it and keep it working the same. This was a whole new level to the ability and one that was fundamentally different from the other two levels.

    A smile was on Akata¡¯s face as he quickly meditated to recover his energy. The whole process of understanding his body and comprehending the last part had taken a whole day by itself. Akata was exhausted but was equally filled with joy.

    After he recovered he stood up and made his way to the training field. As he was walking he thought about the people he wanted to see such as Peizhi Xiuying, Huihe Ji, Xiao Pao, and others. Most of them were at the Tower of Clouds and the only way to see them would be to go there himself. Others¡­ had left the sect.

    With a shake of his head Akata cleared his mind of such thoughts and prepared to enter the first Cabin Trial. There wasn¡¯t a specific order to take them and you didn¡¯t even have to try them all. But people made it a norm to go in decreasing order while taking the trials.

    Akata stepped in front of the the Tenth Cabin Trial. The cabin was still there and the door was wide open. But one couldn¡¯t see past the door at all. That was because it was a teleportation portal.

    Others had noticed his figure and examined him for a bit. They noticed his red cloak that covered over one shoulder and his right arm. His spiky black hair that reached to his shoulders and his bright crimson eyes. Word started circulating of who this was.

    Akata didn¡¯t pay any attention however as he stared at the doorway of the Tenth Cabin Trial. This was where his rise to fame started and he was back. He took in a deep breath and then strode forward. In the blink of an eye he vanished.

 Chapter 113: Tenth Cabin Trial

    Vast plains stretched out as far as the eye could see. Green grass littered the field and a bright blue sky was overhead. There were few clouds in the sky which made it a sunny paradise for anyone.

    With a whoosh, Akata appeared in the middle of this field. He looked out as far as he could se but all that remained was the grassy plains. There was nothing else in sight. Suddenly a voice rang into Akata¡¯s head.

    ¡°Defeat as many as you can.¡±

    All of a sudden a figure dressed in black robes appeared in the distance. It carried a sword in its hand and made its way over to where Akata was.

    ¡°So it¡¯s that kind of trial for starters. Hehe. I get to test myself out earlier than expected.¡± Akata smiled as he pulled his arm back and threw out a punch.

    The black robed figure was also at the 7th Grade along with Akata but as soon as it came into contact with the blast from the punch it was thrown back and destroyed. It didn¡¯t even have the chance to strike towards Akata before it was destroyed.

    Before Akata could pull back his arm however, two more black robed figures appeared off in the distance. Each one was carrying a sword in their hands and were advancing toward Akata. They too were at the 7th Grade along with Akata.

    These figures came too fast and didn¡¯t even give time for Akata to rest. He drew back his arm again and punched out two more times in the direction of the figures. They too were blasted back and destroyed before they came close to Akata.

    Almost as soon as they were destroyed 3 more figures showed up to take their place. Akata readied himself as he began to punch wildly. As soon as all the figures were down five more came. Then there were 8, then 13, then 21.

    The number of figures kept on increasing as soon as all the rest were down. After 21 came 34 figures. They weren¡¯t particularly strong but their increasing numbers made it difficult to handle all of them.

    Akata looked at all of the approaching figures and took in a deep breath. ¡®No need to hold back.¡¯ He thought to himself. His battle intent bursted out becoming a wild wind. He slowly released his breath and as he did the pressure in the area increased. His hair whipped about and he started to glow with a crimson light.

    A grin appeared on his face as he took a step forward. With that step his Bludhaven Scythe appeared within his grass hand. He lifted it in the air with both hands. Then he stopped and looked out at the rapidly advancing enemies.

    ¡°This¡­ feels much better.¡± He lightly said. ¡°World Omen of Lord Dullahan. First stance. Guillotine Slice.¡± A black light sprang up around the Bludhaven Scythe. It mixed in with the crimson light and made for an eerie appearance. He swept out with his scythe and an arc of red-black scythe-light shot toward a group of clustered up figures.

    They didn¡¯t stand a chance as they were instantly chopped in half. It was as if their bodies weren¡¯t even an obstacle for the scythe as it passed right through.

    A black robed figure appeared behind Akata and sliced toward him with its sword. Akata didn¡¯t retreat as he quickly turned around and sliced off the head of the figure before the sword had the chance to touch him. He then jumped on the body of the now headless figure into the air.Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more.

    ¡°Second stance. Silent Meteor Kill.¡± Even more black light covered over the scythe and even started to expand upon Akata¡¯s body. Starting in the air, Akata shot down toward another group of black robed figures and instantly bisected them all. His movements were extremely quiet as he destroyed the whole group. The scythe in his hand flowed smoothly without any resistance.

    ¡°So this is how it is supposed to be.¡± Instantly, Akata¡¯s whole body was emerged in black light that covered over his face. ¡°The scythe can be used in this way as well.¡± Akata took in a deep breath and calmed his mind. ¡°Third stance. Clear Passage.¡± He held the scythe in the air with both hands and then slashed downward.

    The motion was the same as Guillotine Slice but the intent behind it was completely different. The Guillotine Slice could be seen as a fast attack meant to cut through everything with ease. But this attack was a straightforward slice meant to create a path for oneself.

    Black light shot out of the scythe into a straightforward motion. Every obstacle it passed by became no more as a simple path was created for Akata. Anything that tried to move onto that path would be slowly cut down into nothingness if they stayed long enough.

    This was the third stance of the World Omen of Lord Dullahan. Akata hadn¡¯t been able to comprehend the technique fully because he wasn¡¯t able to unleash the true power of the scythe with one hand. However, he had been contemplating it for a while now. So now that he was able to use his scythe skills fully, all of his comprehension exploded out and made for rapid improvement in his skills.

    Akata quickly made his way across the battlefield. Sometimes he would strike with utter speed, other times he would be completely silent, and once in awhile he would create a path for himself. Soon all of the 34 figures were killed. Then Akata moved on to 55 figures.

    This trial tested ones tenacity and strength. Without these one wouldn¡¯t be able to move far in this trial. It wasn¡¯t said how many figures one would have to face or if they had to last a certain amount of time. This alone broke many disciples wills. But Akata wouldn¡¯t give up just because he didn¡¯t know the end. In fact, he wasn¡¯t even concerned over the end. To him, he was just beginning.

    Akata kept on attacking with all that he had. Sometimes he would use his scythe and other times he would switch to his fist and feet. He gave it everything he had and he was quickly becoming tired. But even as he fought his smile never faded.

    ¡°Mirror Reflection.¡± A purple rune appeared and out of it came a finger the size of Akata¡¯s body. It flashed across the now barren field coming in contact with figure after figure. Each figure it touched it would crush into the ground.

    ¡°Astral Obliteration.¡± An illusory rock appeared and created massive pressure in the area. Akata threw it out and it began to grow in size until it became like a small boulder. It easily crushed the rest of the black robed figures.

    Akata stood there and looked out at the battle ridden field. He breathed in and out. ¡°Huh? There¡¯s no more?¡± But as soon as the words left his mouth 89 figures appeared. They all wore red robes and had different weapons. There were swords, sabers, spears, staffs, axes, hammers, and much more. That wasn¡¯t it however, as all of the figures had a cultivation level at the 8th Grade!

    Akata took in a deep breath as he rotated his cultivation bases. His face became serious and his smile vanished. Things were really about to get tricky. ¡°Red Cloud Formation.¡±

    Akata¡¯s body began to expand and grow rapidly. At the Core level of the Red Cloud Formation one didn¡¯t need to turn their body into a cloud in order to manipulate it. Akata grew to a size of 10 meters and he stepped forward to take on the enemy.

    He slammed his hands down and the ground cracked and fractured. The 89 red robed figures were shaken but they quickly floated into the air to stabilize themselves. Once one reached the 6th Grade they were capable of floating a few feet off of the ground for a short amount of time.

    The group advanced once more and started to attack Akata. Their weapons flashed by and their spears were thrown. Some of them even used divine abilities to attack. It looked like a flood of ants attacking a single grasshopper.

    Akata took in a deep breath and his eyes flashed with red and gold light. He floated in the air and held out his hand. Instantly the pressure increased exponentially. It weighed down on the figures below and caused their movements to slow down. The pressure kept on increasing until a small rock appeared within Akata¡¯s hand. The pressure then suddenly spiked up.

    The rock grew and grew as it gathered the energy in the area becoming stronger by the second. Gold and red light shone out of it and illuminated everything below it. Akata looked like a celestial god the way he hovered there and had light shine out of him.

    ¡°Astral Obliteration.¡± He said calmly. He turned his palm as he let the rock fall from his hand down to the ground. His face was pale but still hovered there. The rock grew and fell faster as it approached the ground. By the time it was about to hit, it was the size of an actual boulder. The pressure from it pushed the figures to the ground and they were unable to move out of the way.

    Boom!

 Chapter 114: 6th Grade Figure

    The boulder hurdled toward the ground in shocking fashion. As it did, it absorbed more and more of the surrounding energy to make itself stronger than before. The pressure from it increased rapidly, ensuring that none of the figures below could move to evade it.

    This was the true Astral Obliteration. Not the illusory ones like before. This one was the physical manifestation of the rock and it brought along tremendous power to crush and annihilate anything and everything in its path. The true power brought along consequences for Akata but he could manage to hold on for a bit.

    Boom!

    It crashed down seeking the destruction of all things below it. The figures below were crushed to pieces and for those further out, the shock wave swept across them and shredded them into nothingness. This was an attack bent on complete and utter chaos for a wide area.

    Out of the 89 figures, surprisingly, 11 managed to survive the attack. Although they weren¡¯t in good shape, the fact that they managed to survive showed that either their protective techniques were good, the power of the attack was lacking, and/or they were in the right place at the right time.

    Akata descended down rapidly and came down with a bang as he rushed out to finish the remaining figures. Now that the numbers had decreased rapidly, it was much easier to handle them all. Reverting back to his regular size, Akata brandished his scythe and sliced at the remaining red robed figures.

    He looked at the battlefield and let out a long and deep breath. He didn¡¯t have time to catch it however as a total of 144 figures dressed in white robes appeared. Their cultivation base level reaching the 9th Grade. Upon looking at them Akata started to laugh. It wasn¡¯t a laugh out of despair but joy. It had been a long time since he could enjoy fighting to his heart''s content.

    All of these figures had a higher cultivation base than he did and they outnumbered him greatly, but who cared? He was able to handle regular 10th Grade beasts with ease let alone 9th Grade mortal cultivators. Although their numbers might be shocking they wouldn¡¯t cause him to be hopeless.

    He wanted to be considered a monster in the art of fighting. Only monsters created legends and were known throughout time and places.

    ¡°So¡­ that¡¯s my desire then. I want to become a monster. Normal people are too basic and I want more than that. I want to create legends of my own to that will exist throughout all time and spread through countless territories.¡± Akata smiled and then held his scythe in the air.

    The white robed figures surrounded him on all sides. They carried different weapons and some of them already started to flash incantation gestures. Akata came to find that none of the figures in the trial were of average strength. Their attacks wouldn¡¯t cause the air to shake and none of their energy would be wasted at all. It would be contained, saving the actual energy for their opponent.

    Akata had continuously studied them while he was attacking and took note of this particular trait. Their movements were refined and didn¡¯t do anything extra. It was as if everything in their zone would be under their control.

    Suddenly, Akata came to a realization. He lowered his scythe down to his side and closed his eyes. With but an instant he spread his nature sense out to cover an area of 30 meters around him. He saw all of the movements of the white robed figures approaching him clearly. All of their movements were refined and didn¡¯t waste much energy. Their level of control could be said to be near perfect.This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

    ¡°Let¡¯s try it.¡± Akata willed it and his nature sense filled with power that crashed out like a tidal wave. It battered against everything it covered and made to crush it all. Akata frowned and furrowed his brows. The nature sense then began to calm down and become cool. The surprising part was that the crushing pressure from it began to increase. Not only that but a tingly sensation started to rise from it.

    ¡°I need more control of it. Like how I control my scythe the way I want I should be able to control my energy.¡± Not only was his nature sense becoming more calm by the second, the pressure from it became stronger and it also became sharper.

    The white robed figures closed in on Akata but as soon as they stepped into the nature sense their movements were slowed drastically. Although it was powerful, it alone wasn¡¯t able to cut them down just yet.

    Akata raised his scythe once more and opened his eyes. ¡°Control. Refinement. Zone.¡± Akata murmured some more words but they washed out under the barrage of magic techniques by the white robed figures.

    Akata¡¯s Bludhaven Scythe flashed with an intense black light that showed on everything. It created something like a dark field where Akata stood in the middle of. This field seemed to be under the control of Akata and it was mixed in with his sharp and pressuring nature sense.

    ¡°Fourth stance. Dark Intent Ring.¡± He muttered. He spun around in a circle with his scythe swinging out. The black light on the scythe followed the path and soon a ring of black scythe-light surrounded Akata¡¯s body. This was his own domain. He could control what happened inside of this small ring of his and anything that got too close would be cut down instantly from the swirling scythe intent in it.

    Akata stood there with gleaming eyes looking at the scythe in his hands. Right now, it was the most beloved thing he could think of at the moment. He strode forward and met with the first 9th Grade figure. The figure lurched out with its own scythe and attempted to strike Akata. But how could its scythe arts compare to the World Omen of Lord Dullahan?

    Akata took a glance at the scythe and shook his head. ¡°Too wide of a swing.¡± He raised his own scythe and slashed out. A black light enveloped the figure as it was cut in half from the head to the groin.

    He turned his head to look at the next approaching figure before saying, ¡°Too slow.¡± He struck out with immense speed and instantly cut apart the figure. He then turned around in a fast motion and swept across two more approaching figures. Their heads went flying in the next instant.

    As soon as that was done however, three more figures flashed out and pounced toward Akata. He barely had time to dodge so he didn¡¯t and let them come. Instantly, his Dark Intent Ring flashed with black light and the figures that came into contact with it was sliced apart.

    It was a good thing that blood didn¡¯t come out of these figures otherwise Akata would be completely drenched in it by now. He didn¡¯t have the luxury to think about that as more and more figures came in to attack him. Their numbers were overwhelming and Akata was quickly put into a bind.

    He had to constantly dodge attacks from foes that attacked from long distance and sometimes had to retreat from big crowded areas. He even suffered a few attacks that managed to break through his Dark Intent Ring. As the battle went on, Akata suffered more and more injuries but he kept on fighting with all he had.

    He let out a roar as gold and crimson light sprang up from his body. The pressure from the fighting quickly intensified. But the number of figures gradually decreased with each swing of Akata¡¯s scythe.

    <ol start="137">

    <li> 135. 134. 131. 129.</li>

    </ol>

    Slowly the number of figures decreased but it didn¡¯t feel like that for Akata. To him it seemed never ending and without pause. He grew in size to become five meters as he put away his scythe and started smashing the ground repeatedly and causing runes to appear all over the field. Fire and water covered over the battlefield along with many other elements.

    <ol start="67">

    <li> 65. 61. 58.</li>

    </ol>

    The battle seemed to slow down with the decreasing amount of figures but Akata actually sped up his attacks. He was testing out the various insights he had came up with and was rapidly improving at a fast pace. It was a pace that would make talented individuals look like mere average people.

    Soon there were only twenty something figures left then tens and finally in the single digits. Akata looked drained and his cloak was completely torn apart along with the rest of his clothes. His grass arm looked somewhat drained and wrinkled. He took a deep breath as he cut down the last figure.

    As he did that he mused to himself, ¡®Please let this be the last one.¡¯ He had to admit that he was tired from all of the fighting. He felt almost completely drained of energy and desperately needed to rest.

    But just as that happened. A flash of light appeared off in the distance. This was a signal showing that more figures were appearing. Akata nearly broke apart. But then he was surprised to find just a single figure appear.

    This figure wore light silver armor that covered its whole body including its face and had a single greatsword in its hands. The tip of the greatsword laid dug in the ground as the figure looked at Akata without moving. The aura emanating from the figure caused Akata to be slightly taken aback. It was a 6th Grade aura and a very refined one at that.

 Chapter 115: Three Strikes

    Akata stood there looking closely at the silver armored figure in front of him. He had a peak cultivation base like the rest of the figures but his was at the 6th Grade. A grade below that of Akata. The aura that was naturally radiating off of him was fine and noble. It was as if he was a knight standing guard over a castle. He just stood there looking right at Akata as if weighing him up.

    After a long moment passed the figure finally spoke. He had a deep voice that echoed in this wide field. It sounded as if he were near and yet also faraway. His words rang into the ears of Akata who was some distance in front of him.

    ¡°You advanced quite rapidly in this trial. And considering your age you could be said to be the most talented person in the sect right now. Even better than that Jiandan Fuza. Given enough time you¡¯ll surpass him.¡± He paused and slightly nodded his head at Akata showing his approval.

    ¡°The trial ends here. I am the last part. Other than you, there have been two other people who have made it this far, with two others almost making it. For making it this far and with it being your first time, I shall bestow you with a gift. It is up to you whether you can accept it or not.¡± The silver armored man raised the greatsword in his hand and held it out in front of him. ¡°Prepare yourself.¡±

    Akata¡¯s eyes went wide with shock. The man himself seemed much more different than the other figures throughout the trial. He was more sentient and felt more alive yet he also didn¡¯t seem to be living. But, that wasn¡¯t what had shocked Akata. While the man¡¯s aura and stature could be said to be great, it was the greatsword in his hands that caused Akata¡¯s eyes to widen.

    The blade of the greatsword was a crimson color while the hilt was a pitch black. It gave Akata an odd yet familiar feeling upon looking at it. Looking at the body of the greatsword caused Akata to feel a sort of suppression that he couldn¡¯t stand up to. Simply, he had to look away otherwise he might drop to his knees from weakness.

    Akata¡¯s eyes were bloodshot and he bit his lip. Blood seeped out and he regained his focus. He found himself sweating profusely, his back cold and his clothes drenched. He immediately rotated his cultivation bases as best he could and stood on guard.

    The silver armored man nodded his head and said, ¡°Good. You pass the first strike. Now for the second.¡± He lifted the greatsword all the way in the air and slowly swung it down in a casual lazy manner. There seemed to be no skill involved at all yet an invisible wave of energy attacked Akata.

    This wave of energy didn¡¯t attack his body or his mind, but his soul. As soon as Akata felt his soul being attacked he knew what the familiar feeling was.

    ¡®The Outer Element of Souls! He¡¯s using the element of souls in that greatsword in order to attack. It was just a casual swing yet it has such a suppressive force!¡¯ Akata was too surprised by this fact and his eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets.

    This was his first time battling against someone with the power to wield the element of souls. Instead of being overwhelmed, however, he was ecstatic. He had the power to use the element of souls but had no idea how to. This would be wonderful experience for him.

    Akata rotated his crimson rune and golden rune to fight back against the suppressive force. Akata¡¯s knees wobbled tremendously and his whole body went pale. It felt as if his soul was being battered by a hammer repeatedly. This was a type of pain that could not even be perceived by the body. Only the soul could understand this pain. Akata let out a hoarse and bloodcurdling wail as he endured this great pain. Not even the pain of having his body mutilated could compare to this. Compared to this, that feeling was like a bee sting while this was like being flayed.

    Luckily, the feeling only lasted for a short amount of time, otherwise Akata would have passed out or suffered serious injuries. His eyes were dark and lifeless and his body looked extremely limp. But Akata stayed on his feet the whole time. It looked like if a slight breeze came through he would surely topple over.

    Akata¡¯s mind was filled with countless thoughts. Pain, terror, fear, and oddly enough admiration. He admired this strong power that he would be able to wield in the future. After a bit of time, his mind cleared up enough for him to think of other things. He soon came to a shocking realization.

    Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more.

    ¡®He didn¡¯t even directly attack me. Not only that, but he didn¡¯t use anywhere close to his full strength. It probably wasn¡¯t even ten percent.¡¯ Fear swelled up in his heart, mind, soul, and body but Akata forcefully pushed it down as best he could.

    He suddenly looked at the silver armored man in front of him and asked, ¡°How much time has passed?¡± His voice sounded as if it were dragged along with each new word.

    The silver armored man said without any emotion, ¡°The first strike it took you 1 minute to come to. For the second strike you took a full¡­ 5 minutes.¡±

    Akata was beyond shocked. He spent a full 5 minutes to be aware of his surroundings once more. Given the strength of this figure, Akata could¡¯ve died countless times already. Without even realizing it. This was a scary thought. If an enemy had used this against him he would¡¯ve had no choice but to be at the mercy of that enemy.

    The first strike alone would¡¯ve been enough to take care of Akata in a fight. To say nothing of the second. Akata¡¯s fear and admiration of this element kept on growing side by side.

    ¡°There¡¯s one more strike but you won¡¯t be able to take it.¡± The silver armored man said emotionlessly as he put down his greatsword and laid it in his hands the same way it looked when he first arrived.

    ¡°You have completed this trial now and can leave. Since you made it this far you will earn-¡± His words were instantly cut off.

    ¡°No! I want to continue.¡± Akata gritted his teeth and yelled out. His face was pale and filled with sweat. His eyes still showed a lingering fear that wouldn¡¯t dissipate for a while. But his voice sounded completely determined.

    ¡°You wish¡­ to continue?¡± The silver armored man said without emotion and hesitation. It watched as Akata earnestly shook his head yes. The man went silent for a long moment as if contemplating something. Finally he said, ¡°Alright. Prepare for my third and final strike.¡± He lifted up the crimson greatsword in his hands and held it out with one hand.

    ¡°My third strike will consist of a skill that uses the Outer Element of Souls as the basis. I will merely use the power of a 6th Grade cultivator. If you can take this attack and remain standing then you will be rewarded heavily, if not you may die.¡±

    When his words finished a crimson glow sprang out from his body. It looked similar to when Akata rotated his crimson rune and let the light shine out of his body. But with the silver armored figure it looked much more stable and in control.

    Akata had a smile on his face as he rotated his crimson rune. Abundant crimson light showed out of his body and filled the field that he was in. The area quickly turned into a place where crimson light could be seen everywhere.

    ¡®He uses a soul suppression technique. Although it looks like it comes from the greatsword, he actually ¡®feeds¡¯ his own power into it. It has gained so much of his power that it simply turned into it. Making it a kind of soul greatsword.

    The suppression itself must come from the skill he is about to use. It mainly just bashes against my soul from all sides and keeps my mind occupied for a period of time. I just have to protect my soul from his attack and it won¡¯t have any effect on me. But how am I supposed to do it?¡¯

    Akata thought and thought as he looked at the silver armored man until an idea slowly formed in his head. Suddenly, the silver armored man swung his greatsword in Akata¡¯s direction sending out a wave of crimson sword-light. The sword-light looked incorporeal and rushed out like a ghost. It immediately arrived in front of Akata and bore into him.

    ¡°Spectral Heart¡­ ¡± The silver armored man said calmly. This time his voice had a tinge of concern.

    It seeked out his soul in an attempt to attack it directly. It made its way to Akata¡¯s soul region and then found his soul. The crimson wave then wrapped around Akata¡¯s soul like a blanket.

    ¡°... Shockwave.¡± He spoke the last words and then the blanket-like sword wave started to rapidly constrict on itself. But almost immediately right after it loosened back up. It then repeated and repeated. It actually resembled the beating of a heart. It was repeatedly crushing the soul over and over making this pain unbearable for anybody living.

    Akata immediately coughed up a mouthful of blood and his vision began to fade and grow dark. He gritted his teeth long enough and forced his gold and crimson runes to rotate forcefully. Crimson and gold light illuminated everything within his soul region. Instantly, an intense heavenly pressure assaulted the sword-light. It trembled but continued to constrict Akata¡¯s soul.

    But then, the crimson light mixed in with the golden light and an absorption force exerted itself on the sword-light. It trembled even more vigorously and looked as if it might loosen its grip on Akata¡¯s soul completely.

    The silver armored man looked thoughtfully at what was happening. He raised an eyebrow but nothing more.

    Akata threw his head back and let out a mighty roar. His skin began to crack from the intense pain and suppression his soul was feeling. ¡°I WILL BREAK YOU!¡± He yelled at the top of his lungs.

    His whole body turned into a red mist and his soul gained more freedom to fight back against the sword-light. Akata flashed an incantation gesture and slammed his hand on his chest. A glistening purple rune appeared within his soul region next to his wrapped up soul. A hand popped out of the rune and then forcefully grabbed onto the sword-light.

    His runes began to spin faster and faster as he forced them to work harder than ever. The pressure from the gold rune and absorption effect caused the sword-light to tremble and weaken. The Red Cloud Formation technique gave Akata¡¯s own soul more freedom to move and fight against the sword-light. And the hand from the Mirror Reflection forcefully pulled on the sword-light to tear it away.

    All of this was happening at the same time. If it wasn¡¯t for Akata¡¯s monster amount of mental strength, he would¡¯ve passed out from the burden.

    The sword-light was already trembling from the runes. With the addition of the Red Cloud Formation and the Mirror Reflection it naturally broke away from Akata¡¯s soul. Akata roared as he crushed the sword-light with his illusory hand and absorbed the energy with his crimson rune.

    He looked at the silver armored man with a pale face and bedraggled expression. He gave a slight chuckle then passed out. Surprisingly, since the Spectral Heart Shockwave attack was launched till the time it was defeated by Akata, a whole 30 minutes had passed.

 Chapter 116: Monarch Heartsoul

    Akata slowly opened his eyes as he first saw a clear sky in the air. He instantly sat up and saw the silver armored man standing there with the hilt of the greatsword in his hands and the tip sitting on the ground. How he looked at the moment was how he had appeared when he first got here.

    When he saw Akata sit up and look at him, his face was emotionless. He waited a moment before saying, ¡°By orders of the sect, you have passed this trial.¡± He waved a hand toward Akata and a crimson light flew toward him and merged into his forehead. Akata wasn¡¯t expecting it and he was too weak right now to resist it. A blast of information flooded into his head and merged into his thoughts.

    ¡°Th¡­ This is?!¡± Akata¡¯s eyes went wide with shock and disbelief. What he had just received was simply too spectacular. This could be considered a truly fortunate gift.

    ¡°You may now leave.¡± The silver armored figure waved his hand once more and the power of teleportation sprang up around Akata. He was now being teleported out of the trial. Just as he was fading away he heard the voice of the silver armored figure once more. ¡°It took you 30 minutes to resist and break the attack and 30 minutes to wake up.¡± With that Akata fully teleported out of the 10th Cabin Trial.

    On the outside there was a list of 10 people on the 10th Cabin. These 10 people all performed spectacularly in this trial. The people on the outside were watching the list and looked on as a new name appeared at the bottom of it. Then it kept moving up rapidly until it actually moved up from the number 3 spot and all the way to number 1. The new number 1 was obviously Akata.

    ¡°What?! Akata¡¯s back and he has taken the number 1 spot for himself?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re joking, right? Nobody can pass Jiandan Fuza. He¡¯s a genius afterall.¡±

    ¡°Wait. He¡¯s telling the truth look at the top 10. Look! He¡¯s really number 1!¡±

    Soon a crowd started to gather around the 10th Cabin to take a look at the list and make sure nobody was lying. What they saw shocked them. Ever since this Cabin Trial had been created and Jiandan Fuza challenged it, nobody had ever taken his spot.

    The crowd was abuzz with conversation and soon all eyes turned to the front door where they could feel the power of teleportation. Someone was coming out of the trial. They all looked on with gleaming eyes.

    Soon, they saw a young boy with okay features and ragged torn clothes appear. His hair was wavy and reached down to his neck. He had a rather disappointed look on his face but as soon as he saw the crowd just staring at him, his heart shook.

    ¡°Uhh¡­ Hey fellow sect members?¡± He said with confusion.

    ¡°That¡¯s not Akata.¡± Someone from the crowd called out.

    The crowd soon became disappointed and didn¡¯t pay anymore attention to the boy that had come out of the trial. The boy, however, was still perplexed but soon came to know why when he looked at the leaderboard. Soon, he joined the crowd to wait for Akata.The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

    The teleportation portal lit up many more times with no appearance from Akata, it was a trial that many people participated in after all. But the 13 time it lit up a rather calm looking person appeared. He had his right arm covered up and his eyes were a fiery crimson red. His hair was in disarray and his clothes were torn. He looked out to see a crowd just looking at him.

    After the few times people had come out of the trial with no results, the joy and anticipation had slowly died down from the crowd. Now, whenever someone had come out of the trial they all would just look over to see who it was. It made for an awkard moment to have a whole crowd looking at one person who had just arrived out of an intensive trial such as the 10th Cabin Trial.

    The new figure looked at the surrounding people as they all looked at him. At first there was silence in the air which made the scene even more awkward but then someone called out with excitement. ¡°Tha¡­ That¡¯s Akata! It¡¯s finally Akata!¡±

    That yelled incited some people from their calm and excited their hearts and minds. Soon, an uproar emitted from the crowd and they all rushed over to Akata. They were excited, curious, envious, cunning, all sorts of emotions and reasons were rushing through them when they saw Akata appear before them.

    To see a whole crowd rushing at him from the moment he was teleported out of the trial, obviously Akata was taken aback. He activated his Lunarsun Steps and ran away from the spot he was just in. The crowd was amazed at the speed he was able to display just then. He was many times faster than them. They could only watch as he ran away from them as fast as he could.

    ¡®What was that? Why were they all rushing towards me like that? Could it have been because I passed the trial?¡¯ Akata thought in his head as he ran away from the overly excited trial. He could only speculate as he ran towards his dorm room.

    In his dorm, Akata immediately shut the door and went to sit cross legged on his bed. Calming himself down he let out a long breath and then focused himself. Even though he did, his heart was still stirring with excitement.

    ¡°I can¡¯t believe I received a legacy that focuses around the Outer Element of Souls. This is just simply too much. It¡¯s not some measly technique that has a few skills in it but an actual legacy.¡± Akata was truly astounded right now.

    ¡°Did you say a legacy for the Outer Element of Souls? That¡¯s impossible. There¡¯s no way there could be a legacy for an Outer Element. They are considered equal to Heavenly elements how could there be legacies for them. Not even the gods themselves could come up with legacies.¡± Noluck immediately said after hearing Akata¡¯s words just then.

    Outer Elements were essentially elements that were on the same level as the heavens themselves. Gods themselves were blessed by the heavens so not even they could create legacies for Outer Elements. With his knowledge, there was no way to create a legacy for an Outer Element.

    ¡°Well I have it right here. Heartsoul Legacy. Created by Monarch Heartsoul. It covers many different ways to use the Outer Element of Souls and mix it with the Inner Element of Heart. Speed, movement, fighting, control, and other stuff as well. It¡¯s almost like when I received that scythe legacy.¡± Akata said. This was truly a great gift.

    As Akata searched through it quickly to see all of its contents he frowned slightly. ¡°It¡¯s not the full thing.¡± he sighed to himself. If it was the full legacy then this would truly be a blessing from heaven itself, but it wasn¡¯t. A full legacy would be complete with treasures, life-saving tools, armors, weapons, and of course techniques. But this was part of the legacy. It only contained some of the techniques of the creator.

    ¡°From what this legacy says, I could reach easily reach immortality with just this. Although it sounds enticing, it isn¡¯t what I want to focus on. This legacy combines elements of the Heart and Soul. That doesn¡¯t sound like the route that I want to go through. My scythe legacy can bring me to the immortal level as well.¡± Akata shook his head. Still it was worth looking into, it had ways to improve his use over the Outer Element of Souls after all.

    Reading through the techniques in the legacy Akata found an interesting attack. ¡°The Spectral Heart Shockwave attack that silver armored figure used. So that was the 6th technique created by Monarch Heartsoul.¡± Shivers ran down Akata¡¯s spine upon realising this. It was a move that required tremendous insights into the Heart and Soul elements.

    When used in the hands of someone with a 6th Grade cultivation base it was devastating to an insane extent. It was even able to put Akata to sleep for half an hour, and that was after it had taken him half an hour to defeat it in the first place. If it was someone who was actually on equal footing with Akata, he would¡¯ve been done for.

    After reading through all of the available information, Akata stopped reviewing it. His eyes gleamed with battle intent. ¡°For now I¡¯ll focus on the trials and make it to the tower. That way I can have a good position in the war.¡± Akata took in a deep breath and once more strode out of his dorm to make his way to the Cabin Trials. This time he was heading for the 9th Cabin Trial.

 Chapter 117: Ninth Cabin Trial

    Akata had completely immersed himself in meditation so when he went back out he had forgot to change into some fresher clothes. His plant arm was almost visible and if anyone was really paying attention, they would be able to see that his arm looked sort of green.

    On the other hand he had also forgotten about the huge impact that he had had on the Tenth Cabin Trial. As soon as he got close to the trial grounds he was bombarded by disciple after disciple.

    ¡°How¡¯d you pass the trial?¡±

    ¡°Your time was too fast did you cheat?¡±

    ¡°Show me what you did to get that far.¡±

    Multiple comments and questions rang into Akata¡¯s ears. He was surprised and taken back by all of the attention that he was receiving at the moment. He gave a wry smile and then said, ¡°I¡¯m focusing on the trials right now so would you all please make way?¡±

    But his words seemed to have been unheard by anybody as they kept pestering him. Akata tried to force his way through the crowd but instead felt some resistance. He took in a deep breath and with a quick release of his breath he instantly traversed multiple meters toward the Ninth Cabin Trial. He looked back to see the crowd confused as to where he had went.

    To them, Akata had just vanished out of nowhere. If it wasn¡¯t for the face that they all have experienced teleportation and were very familiar with the power of it, they would¡¯ve thought that he was teleported away from them. They looked around until they saw Akata some distance away from them making his way to the Ninth Cabin Trial.

    Seeing that the crowd was heading for him again, Akata quickly activated his Lunarsun Steps again and flashed toward the Ninth Cabin Trial. Within a few breaths he was already in the door and being teleported to the trial grounds. The crowd could only look on helplessly as he entered the trial.

    Some of them walked away, others sat down and meditated, and the rest began to enter their own trial. Who knew how long it would take for Akata to finish this trial? Although they were dejected they still had their own paths and needed to rise in power quickly. If Akata wasn¡¯t there to quickly give answers then all they could do was train like they had been doing.

    Whoosh. Akata appeared in a dark place. He could see nothing but pitch blackness from where he stood. It actually reminded him of the time that he was facing the Hellhounds. With but a thought a massive amount of nature sense exploded out of him to cover the area.

    Akata already had a great amount of nature energy and mental strength to control it. Coupled with the fact that when he was blind and constantly using his nature sense to see, it improved to a whole new level. Merely sending it out to look in the dark was as simple as opening his eyes.

    However, when Akata sent his nature sense out, his eyebrows furrowed a bit. ¡°There¡¯s still nothing in the area.¡± He frowned slightly and spread his nature sense out farther and farther. But, no matter how far he stretched it, there was nothing around him. His nature sense could spread out to 299 meters which was his limit. He spread it out as far as he could but still couldn¡¯t find anything.Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work!

    Retracting his nature sense Akata¡¯s frown deepened. ¡°This place is completely empty. I tried to get an edge over people but it seems as if I have to wait for instructions.¡± Soon enough, a voice could be heard.

    ¡°The 9th Cabin Trial. Trial of mental fortitude. Last as long as you can.¡± That was it. The pitch black area became deathly silent. If it wasn¡¯t for the anticipation people felt for the trial, they would¡¯ve gone insane from the sheer loneliness and utter silence.

    Akata could hear his heart thumping in his chest. There was complete silence so the only thing he could hear was the noises his body could make. He was waiting for the trial to start. But soon minutes passed without any change in the area.

    As the time passed, Akata could soon hear his blood moving throughout his body. ¡°Hello? Is the trial broken or something.¡± He called out but nothing happened. He eventually sat down and found out that he could hear his muscles move.

    With each second that passed, Akata would hear his heart thumping, his blood pumping, and his muscles moving. It got to the point that these sounds even overpowered his own thoughts. Sitting in this silent area with nothing but the sound of his own body started to make Akata anxious.

    Soon half an hour passed by and there was still nothing. By this time Akata found out what exactly the trial was testing. ¡®This mental fortitude trial tests how long I can handle this extreme silence and loneliness without going crazy. Well now that I know I should be able to hold on for a bit longer.¡¯

    This was exactly what the trial was. For those that couldn¡¯t even last long enough to figure out what the trial tested would obviously have weak minds and a weak mental strength. Those that had stronger minds would last a bit longer, but for those that could figure out what the trial tested could mentally prepare themselves.

    This tested how much you could endure before giving up. Sure some might say you could just meditate, but that was extremely hard to do under these circumstances. Even though peace and quiet was needed to meditate properly, one would still be able to hear the ¡®sounds of nature¡¯ in the air. Those sounds would soothe you and help to bring you into a deeper meditation. But in this place, there were no sounds. It was utter silence. And with the sounds of your body obstructing your focus it made it even harder to just meditate.

    On the other hand however, if one was able to meditate in this environment, they would have an extremely resilient mind and focus. In fact, they would be considered a genius in the path of mental strength. But Akata didn¡¯t know any of this. All he knew was that he needed to last as long as he could in this place.

    He sat there unmoving so as to reduce as much noise as possible. These sounds would spark his mind and slightly drive him a bit crazy. By reducing the noise he made, he could clear his mind. Gradually, Akata became much more still and his breathing became much more slower.

    His heart beat less and his blood pumped a lot less more. With his still body his muscles wouldn¡¯t creak and it became quieter for him. This was actually kind of serene for him at the moment. He felt much more calm, in fact he felt that if he was in the outside world, he would sense many new things.

    An hour passed. Two hours. Three hours. Six hours. Akata sat still and would barely take a breath of air. Even when he did breathe it was so soft that it was barely noticeable. Naturally, Akata had fallen into meditation. He was completely at bliss right now. Eventually, half a day passed by for him.

    At this time, a voice rang out in the dark abyss. ¡°Awake. You have passed the trial.¡± Akata slowly opened his eyes and found himself in the same dark place. But he found something different about himself. ¡°I¡¯ve broken through?¡±

    Standing up and inspecting his body, Akata found out that he had broken through to the 8th Grade of the Mortal Rank while he was calmly meditating. He had already been at the peak of the 7th Grade and had just needed a bit more to break through. Who would¡¯ve thought that he would have done so naturally.

    ¡°You may now leave.¡± The voice called out once more. The power of teleportation sprang up around Akata as he was teleported out of the dark place. When he reappeared he was in front of the Ninth Cabin. It was now nighttime but there were still a bit of disciples trying out the trials and training. Akata had just broken through naturally and was in a deep meditation so he didn¡¯t need to consolidate his foundation.

    He looked around with a calm face and noticed his name was now number one on the top ten list. He then strode over to the next cabin. The Eighth Cabin Trial. Stepping into the doorway he was teleported away. With a whoosh he reappeared on an island that was floating in the sky. Far off in the distance there was another island that was also floating in the sky. Akata stood there and waited for instructions to begin.

    ¡°Walk toward the other island. Make it as far as you can.¡±

 Chapter 118: Taking on Trials

    As soon as Akata appeared he noticed how different this place felt from the others. It was as if there was an energy present that felt familiar to him but was something that he knew he didn¡¯t know about. It was a weird feeling but nonetheless he accepted the task.

    Akata walked to the edge of the island and looked over it. Down below he saw nothing but clouds and up above he saw nothing but more clouds. Judging by the color of the clouds and part of the sky he could see, it looked to be that the sun was either about to set or was just rising. The sky was a warm orange color and made for a great view.

    Akata looked across and saw the other island far off in the distance. There was no path for him to take only empty air. There was no way for people in the Mortal Rank to fly so that was out of the question. At most they could float a bit but that was definitely not enough to get him across to the other island. Thinking logically, there was no way to get to the other island.

    ¡°Should I just have faith and walk across?¡± Testing out whether there was an invisible bridge Akata couldn¡¯t feel anything so all he could do was trust that there was something that would get him across. The words of the voice resurfaced in his mind. ¡°The voice said to just walk across and make it as far as I could. So that¡¯s what I¡¯m going to do.¡±

    Akata took in a deep breath and fully stepped off of the island that he was on. He fell for a short distance but then landed on a bridge nonetheless. He figured something like this would happen, but what he didn¡¯t account for was the pain that would wrack his brain as soon as he stepped foot on the bridge.

    It was a sharp pain that seemed to attack an unknown energy that was within him. An energy that seemed apart of him yet couldn¡¯t be used at the moment. Even after a moment passed the pain continuously attacked him. That unknown energy within his brain, however, seemed to be stimulated slightly as if it was about to awaken.

    ¡°Eh? What is this?¡± The pain was small and barely to Akata was negligent, almost nonexistent to him, however, the unknown energy within him was intriguing. ¡°It¡¯s almost like my nature sense. Wait.¡± Akata soon came to a startling conclusion. ¡°Could this actually be my divine sense? But isn¡¯t that supposed to awaken once you step into the Earthly Rank? How could it be stimulating now?¡± Akata questioned aloud.

    ¡°Did you say divine sense? It¡¯s supposed to only awaken once someone steps into the Second Rank. Which in your case would be the Earthly Rank or the Flora Rank. It can¡¯t possibly be divine sense that you¡¯re feeling right now. Unless¡­¡± Noluck went silent for a moment. ¡°Unless they are forcibly awakening your divine sense early. I¡¯ve heard that only extremely powerful sects and clans can do this but only one¡¯s that are basically filled with immortals and gods. For this low sect to be able to do it is absolutely absurd and unheard of.¡± Noluck just couldn¡¯t believe it no matter what.

    ¡°This place just keeps getting weirder and weirder. First with the Outer Element technique and now this? There has to be something up with this sect. It can¡¯t possibly be simple.¡±

    ¡°Well that¡¯s why it is considered the most mysterious sect in all of the Divine Crystal Continent.¡± Akata jokingly said. Without another thought he stepped forward. The pain in his great grew more intense but again it wasn¡¯t worth paying attention to for him.

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    He strode forward in a seemingly relaxed manner. As he came closer to the other island the pain that was in his brain grew stronger as did the feeling of the unknown energy. As the pain became stronger so did the feeling of awakening.

    It wasn¡¯t until Akata was halfway when he started to slightly whence at the pain that was wracking his brain. It was getting much more intense and at the same time the feeling of awakening was stronger than ever. Gritting his teeth he held on and continued to walk as far as he could.

    At some point in time, Akata started to take breaks to become accustomed to the pain faster. His breaks started out short at first but soon became longer and longer. By the time he was a third of the distance away, his eyes were bloodshot and he was forcibly dragging himself as he trudged along.

    By this time, he noticed that he wouldn¡¯t be able to make it to the other island. Through gritted teeth, Akata gave up on the trial. He was quickly teleported out of the Eighth Cabin Trial where he stood in the doorway. Immediately a new sense enveloped the area. It spread far and wide and covered everything in a hundred meter radius.

    Akata took in a deep breath. This was divine sense that he was letting out. And it wasn¡¯t weak either but actually kind of strong. It filled him with power and brought a sense of confidence. ¡°This trial actually awakened my divine sense and fed it power. If everyone in the sect took this trial then every single disciple should have awakened their divine sense early.¡± Akata was badly shocked. And not just him but Noluck as well.

    He clearly could tell how astounding and unbelievable this event was. If every disciple in this sect was able to awaken their divine sense then what kind of force would they be? Some of the disciple¡¯s divine sense had to be even stronger than most Second Rank cultivators who were learning about it. This was a terrifying thought.

    The pain in Akata¡¯s brain instantly vanished the moment he was teleported out and was replaced with a feeling of utter power. He was enlivened and immediately went to challenge the next trial. He wanted more. These trials could help him to grow much more powerful. He already had a power that only those at the Second Rank could unlock, what else could he possibly earn? He wanted to know right now.

    He took a quick glance at the top ten list of the Eighth Cabin Trial and stopped in place. His name was in 3rd place. Above him in 2nd was actually Jiandan Fuza. And as for 1st place¡­ it was Peizhi Xiuying! Akata¡¯s mouth hung open as he looked at the name in 1st place. Soon he smiled and then continued on to the Seventh Cabin Trial.

    He wasn¡¯t aiming for the best position on each trial. He just wanted to know where he stacked up against everybody. Some people were better at some trials than others and that clearly showed. Akata was ranked 1st in the Tenth Cabin Trial due to his insane battle prowess. But was ranked 3rd in the Eighth Cabin Trial. This was because his talent laid in nature sense and not divine sense. The two sense naturally combatted each other making it much more difficult for Akata to awaken his divine sense.

    Akata stepped into the doorway of the Seventh Cabin Trial and was teleported to a fiery world. This was a trial of body strength. He was constantly assaulted by fiery winds that seared his clothes and skin. But in turn it made his body stronger and much more resilient. In the end, he ended up breaking through to the 10th Grade in terms of body strength and took 1st place.

    Even further anxious Akata challenged the Sixth Cabin Trial which was a trial of reflexes and perception. He was teleported to a place that constantly switched between night and day. With his nature sense and speed he was easily able to acquire 1st place and even gained enlightenment of how to perfectly combine his Shadowfeet and Lunarsun Steps movement skills.

    The Fifth Cabin Trial was a trial of soul power. With Akata¡¯s soul being twice as strong as others he was able to take 1st in this trial too.

    The Fourth Cabin Trial was a trial of control. He was teleported to an empty void and was stuck there. Until he learned to perfectly control the energy that naturally releases from the body he wouldn¡¯t be able to move. He was quite fast and ended up gaining 4th place.

    In the Third Cabin Trial, Akata had to hunt down several targets and kill them. With each target killed, they would get harder to find and deal with. Obviously the more you killed the tougher it would be. In this trial, Akata was thrown into a wild world covered in forests.

    He looked around at the wilderness. Out of nowhere an old man with a fishing rod came walking toward him from out of nowhere.

    ¡°Hey, there young lad. Would you please do me a favor and catch me some fish. But not just any fish, I want a Poisontrap Fish.¡± He held up a picture of the fish and then handed it over to Akata.

    Akata looked at the picture and then nodded his head. ¡®So all I have to do is get this fish? It has to be spectacular.¡¯ He mused to himself.

 Chapter 119: Third Cabin Trial

    Akata accepted it and asked a few questions to figure out where this fish was. He followed the directions and managed to make it to the river in the area. There he waited like the old man told him. He waited for about a day before he caught sight of the Poisontrap Fish. It was purple in color and very slender. But it¡¯s body was a fully 3 meters long and its fins were as sharp as swords.

    Akata took out his scythe and jumped up while he slashed at the tree branch he was on. Since he was right above the fish, the tree branch fell right in front of it. Blocking its path forward. The fish immediately turned around and darted backwards. It was extremely fast and very agile.

    Akata took in a deep breath and used the Second Stance of the World Omen of Lord Dullahan technique, the Silent Meteor Kill technique. It was a move that was most effective while in the air and was extremely fast. Akata instantly attacked at where the fish was headed and cut its head off.

    ¡®This was too easy.¡¯ Akata thought to himself. He returned the fish to the old man. The old man nodded his head and laughed. ¡°You¡¯re so good. Maybe I can teach you a little something. Follow me.¡± He said.

    He led Akata through the forest. As they went along they didn¡¯t talk at all. Soon, the man became much more quieter, so Akata followed his lead. They ended up in a branch on a tree and the old man pointed off into the distance. ¡°You see that Fanged Monkey right there? It is really fast and the only way to kill it cleanly is if you kill it before it notices you. Watch.¡±

    The old man picked up his fishing rod and held it in the air. He slowly stood up and jumped toward the Fanged Monkey. While in the air he swung the fishing rod, sending the hook toward the Fanged Monkey. With a quick strike, the throat of the beast was cut open and it was dead. It might have seemed slow but it all happened in the time it takes to blink twice!

    The man returned to Akata with a smile. ¡°Let¡¯s see you do it.¡± He said with a laugh. He pointed in another direction where another Fanged Monkey was standing and eating.

    ¡®This is still apart of the trial so I better roll with it. I wonder what this is improving of me.¡¯ Akata jumped into the air and once again used the fastest strike he could muster with his scythe at the moment, Silent Meteor Kill.

    He aimed for the Fanged Monkey¡¯s throat but the monkey looked up at him and then dashed off before Akata could even fully use his skill. Akata landed in the spot that the Fanged Monkey had just occupied and looked around blankly.

    ¡°Ahaha. I figured something like that was going to happen. You youngsters are too wild nowadays. You make yourselves too noticeable. You let your thoughts give rise to your motives and that lets your enemies know what you¡¯re anticipating to do.¡± He laughed.

    ¡°What do you mean?¡± Akata was confused. From his point of view he should¡¯ve succeeded. His attack just then was even a little bit faster than the old mans.

    ¡°You should attack without thinking about attacking. You should kill without thinking about killing. Act without thinking about acting. What you think may let your enemies know what you¡¯re about to do.¡± The old man said somewhat seriously this time. ¡°Here let¡¯s give you a new target to try this on. How about this one.¡±

    The old man pulled a book out from his bag and flipped through the pages. He landed on one and then showed Akata the page. It showed a two-headed deer-like animal with spotted fur. ¡°Try to take this animal out. It usually hangs around the mountainous areas but that¡¯s about all the information I have on it. It should be easy enough to kill. Once you do bring it back to me.¡± The old man said as he dashed off into the trees.Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

    Akata was left standing there. ¡°In the mountainous areas? What kind of information is that? All he did was show me a picture and tell me a wide general area like that, and I¡¯m supposed to find, kill, and bring back that thing?¡± Akata let out a sigh as he climbed a nearby tree. He reached the canopy and looked out. In the distance he could see a mountain range.

    His eyes twitched at the thought of the journey but then they filled with determination. Activating his new Shadowlight movement skill, Akata turned into a ball of black light and disappeared off into the distance. When he reappeared he was about 30 meters away from where he had been. He blinked in and out as he continuously made his way to the mountain range. He would occasionally stop and find something to eat and rest but then would get right back to moving toward the mountain range.

    In this fashion, days passed by. His stamina increased due to his continuous use of his Shadowlight movement technique. Soon he was at the base of the mountain range. He had just taken a rest so he was feeling enlivened and immediately went to search for the two-headed deer creature.

    It only took a day to find the deer. Akata stood in a bush looking at the deer in front of him. ¡®The man said to act without thinking of acting. I don¡¯t know what that means but I¡¯m sure I can still kill this deer.¡¯ Akata¡¯s Bludhaven Scythe appeared in his hand and his eyes filled with the desire to slay this deer as fast as possible so he could get over with this trial.

    The deer unconsciously lifted its heads into the air. Akata rushed out with blinding speed immediately appearing beside the deer and striking out with his fastest and most direct scythe skill, Guillotine Slice. The scythe slashed through the air and soon it hit the ground.

    The deer looked at Akata menacingly as a purple light shot out of its forehead and attacked Akata. Akata immediately dodged the attack but not before it grazed him a bit. ¡°Mental attack!¡± His mind was scrambled for a brief moment and the deer managed to run away from him.

    Akata stood there at a loss. ¡°What did I do wrong? Act without thinking about acting? Attack without thinking about attacking? Kill without thinking about killing? Ughh!¡± Akata let out a low shout and then calmed his mind.

    ¡°The old man is basically saying that I shouldn¡¯t let my actions be known. Even if I know my actions that means my opponents can observe me to know what I am going to do. Or if they are sensitive to changes in the atmosphere like that deer then they might be somewhat aware of my presence or attack.

    I need to calm down before I charge in and attack. My mind is my greatest weapon, it¡¯s best not to let my opponents use it as well.¡± Akata said.

    He rested for a few hours before going back out to search for the deer again. He soon found it and then waited for the right time to strike. His mind was extremely calm. Ever since the Ninth Cabin Trial, Akata had been able to calm his mind to a whole new level.

    He cleared his mind of all thoughts and didn¡¯t even think about the deer. It was as if he wasn¡¯t even thinking at all. With a quick dash Akata slashed open the deer¡¯s throat with his scythe. It happened so calmly and fast that the deer didn¡¯t even notice it had been killed.

    Akata looked down at the deer and a smile appeared on his face. Success. He picked up the deer and started to make his way back to the old man. On the way he had to protect the deer from other beasts and predators. He even had to fight off some mortals.

    It took him some days to reach the old man. ¡°Nice nice. It seems that you can learn after all. But it doesn¡¯t end here. I want to know exactly how far you can go. Here¡¯s your next target.¡± The old man gave Akata another beast to kill.

    Akata would search for the beast. Calm his mind before killing it. Then return it to the old man where he would be given another target. This was how things were. Weeks passed, then months passed.

    The old man was really kind and heartwarming. Akata eventually came to understand and like the man. At times he even forgot that he was apart of the trial. They travelled together across this foreign world and met many different people and beasts. The old man would teach Akata many things. Sometimes he would teach Akata about the world, or money, or beasts. Other times it would be about killing and what techniques to use.

    Akata soon became attached to the man and considered him like a teacher. One day however, as they were walking through a town, they were ambushed by a group of people. It had happened too suddenly. They came out of nowhere, killed the old man, and then immediately fled the scene. Akata could do little more than give chase before losing them.

    He quickly returned back to the old man¡¯s side and cried. He cried for a long time. This old man had taught him many things and was very kind to him. Even though it was a trial he felt close to this person. After drying his tears, Akata found the book that belonged to the old man. He opened it up to see that it had many different pictures with brief descriptions of the pictures

    The descriptions contained locations, tactics, habits, and all sorts of things. At the end of the book there were a few words. My Life''sHitlist. Akata took in a deep breath before calming himself down instantly. During this time, his mind had grown much calmer than it had been.

    He closed the book and held it close to him. Then his eyes filled with determination. In the book he had found a single picture that caused his eyes to go bloodshot. It wasn¡¯t a picture of a beast or a person but a whole building. It was a picture of a whole clan building. Akata stood up and then walked in the direction of the clan building. It was actually in the town he was in right now.

 Chapter 120: Finishing The Trial

    In the months that he had gotten to know the old man, Akata became attached to him. It was a sort of attachment where they would have each other¡¯s backs. And right now, Akata had the old man¡¯s back. His face was devoid of any emotion as he steadily walked to the clan building.

    During all this time, the old man had Akata kill numerous beasts creatures. There was even a few times where Akata was attacked by people and ended up having to injure them badly in order to stop their pursuit. Although all of those targets had come from this book, this was different. Akata was doing this for himself, not the old man¡¯s sake.

    Soon, he stopped moving. Looking up, Akata saw the gates of the clan. Moon Forest Clan. Akata held out his hand and the Bludhaven Scythe appeared. He walked toward the entrance where some guards were located at.

    One guard instantly stopped him. ¡°Halt! What do you think you¡¯re doing runt? Care to tell me your intentions with that thing?¡± The guard obviously didn¡¯t put Akata in his eyes.

    ¡°Tell me where are the people who were sent to murder the old man.¡± Akata said emotionlessly. Tears could be seen forming in his eyes.

    ¡°Eh? Who are you? I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re talking about runt. Leave before we have make you ourselves.¡± As the guard spoke, the others around him released their cultivation base to put pressure upon Akata.

    Akata was still a kid so he didn¡¯t know how he should go about getting the information he wanted. The best and only way he knew about was asking directly. ¡°Just tell me where they are!¡± Akata yelled out. ¡°They just killed the old man and they came from this clan!¡±

    ¡°Hahaha! It looks like you were close to that trash of an old man, huh? Well we might as well take you to go see him then.¡± Another guard called out. He had a flask of alcohol in his hand and was wobbly, clearly he was drunk.

    A guard that was close to him shot him a menacing glare and then smacked him in the face. ¡°You drunk imbecile! Ugh! Now we have to deal with this runt of a kid. Let¡¯s go.¡± He didn¡¯t bother with anymore words as charged toward Akata.

    ¡°Hey kid. I guess the secret is out. Well I¡¯ll tell you exactly where the murderers are, they¡¯re all over the place. That old man tried to blackmail our clan so we kidnapped and tortured his beloved wife and until she died. Everyone in the clan took part in it, the ladies cracked a whip on her soft skin and the men and boys had fun with her nice body. We finally found out he was in town so we sent a squad to kill him as well. None of this should matter to you though as you¡¯re about to die as well.¡± A menacing smile appeared on the guard¡¯s face.

    Akata couldn¡¯t help but be utterly disgusted by this. Just what kind of a clan was this? It would be something to have a small group of people to participate but the whole clan? This was extreme to a whole new level. Akata found himself feeling a repulsive feeling toward this whole clan.

    The guard didn¡¯t even bother to use any weapons as he made to grab for Akata¡¯s throat. Akata on the other hand simply watched as the man approached. As he got closer, Akata got the feeling of being even more disgusted and wanted to get away from this man as soon as possible.A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

    ¡®No getting away won¡¯t work. This clan is simply repulsive. What kind of a place actually permits this kind of behavior? It¡¯s just sick. Even being on the same planet as him makes me sick to my stomach.¡¯ Akata was actually feeling nauseous from looking at the man and literally wanted to throw up.

    All of a sudden Akata felt a sense of danger. He became conscious of reality and looked as the man¡¯s hand was a few inches away from his throat. Lifting his scythe in the air unconsciously and swiping it downwards, Akata used his fastest attack, Guillotine Slice.

    Instantly the man stopped moving and just stood in place. Then his body started to tremble slightly then vigorously. He turned around slowly to face the other guards whose mouths opened with shock and fear. A huge gash could be seen on his chest extending from the top of his head to his abdomen. The man soon collapsed to the ground and died right there.

    Everything fell silent. Akata looked at the man¡¯s body and shivered. He had just killed somebody. But he wasn¡¯t shivering because of that, he shivered because he felt a sense of release. He felt much more cleaner than before.

    He wasn¡¯t against killing people who wanted him dead in the first place. But what he was against was killing people who he saw as innocent. The old man had asked him to kill a person one day and Akata outright refused to do it. But he didn¡¯t let this incident get in his head as the old man¡¯s attitude was just too kind.

    But now, Akata felt much more purer after killing this man. Almost euphoric. It was a feeling of complete bliss, something he had never felt before after killing something.

    ¡®These people are all corrupt and should be erased from this world. I should be the one to cleanse this place.¡¯ Akata thought in his mind. His eyes and face became a lot more calm. To see a cold glow immediately change to a calm one was much more frightening than seeing killing intent.

    Akata had killed many beasts and had grown used to calmly killing them. At this moment, Akata viewed these people in front of him as savage creatures without any principles. In other words they were literal beasts in his mind.

    Looking at one guard Akata transformed into a black light and then was right in front of him. The guard didn¡¯t even have a chance to look into Akata¡¯s face before his head was cut off from his shoulders. Akata felt enlivened and much more at peace.

    He continued his slaughter on the rest of the guards. Seeing his actions, they definitely weren¡¯t in the mood to take on Akata. They ran for their lives inside of the clan village but Akata followed them.

    As soon as he entered, Akata became utterly disgusted. It wasn¡¯t just because he viewed the clan this way but because of the actual clan village itself. There could be seen stakes everywhere that were covered in blood and gore. Some even had corpses attached to them. There were many people chained up and at any home there could be seen at least one person being tortured.

    Seeing this scene made Akata¡¯s eyes go bloodshot. But they soon became calm again. ¡°I¡¯ll clean this place up.¡± He took a step forward and killed one of the guards who had ran away. Then killed another.

    The people here were particularly strong. The Patriarch of the clan was merely at the 4th Grade to say nothing of the others. It was simplicity in itself to kill these people for Akata. Soon, an utter massacre occurred until there were no clan members left.

    Akata had thought about leaving the kids behind but once he saw a small child slowly slicing off the skin of a living breathing little baby, that thought quickly left his mind. He killed off everyone in the Moon Forest Clan.

    Akata was left standing there in an empty village. He had freed all of the living people that had managed to stay alive. For those that had no chance to survive he ended their life as quickly and as painlessly as possible.

    ¡®The old man had this whole evil village on his hitlist.¡¯ Akata held the old man¡¯s book in his hand and looked through it. Now that he did he felt disgusted. ¡®These must all be evil creatures that must be exterminated.¡¯ Akata thought quite calmly. ¡®I clean them for you old man.¡¯

    It was then that Akata went on his journey to cleanse this world of everything that was within this book. He spent many days and nights hunting and killing everything from beasts, to mortals, to cultivators, and even plants. In the end he managed to assassinate hundreds of different targets.

    His skill with the scythe drastically improved after this trial. His assassination skills became nearly perfect and he found out he had a knack for killing quickly. All of his skills from his movement to his attacks fit perfectly together. Almost as if he were made for killing.

    Going through this trial really changed Akata¡¯s outlook on the world around him. Once he killed the last target in the book he was teleported back to the real world. He looked much more mature and an air of danger surrounded him. Surprisingly, he was also number 1 in this trial.

 Chapter 121: End Of The Cabin Trials

    Looking around, Akata found that it was still nighttime in the sect. Almost no time had passed at all. Even the disciples were about in the same place that they had been when he left. It looked as if only a few minutes had passed in the real world.

    Akata had been scared that the time in the other world was the same as the real one and that he had missed the war. But then he thought that it would have been absurd and that if everyone had taken this trial then there would be a lot less disciples around. They would all still be taking this trial if that were the case. The only possibility of this trial being effective would be if¡­ ¡°So it is the Space-time Scenario Chamber after all.¡± Akata said calmly.

    He looked at the various disciples around and some of them looked at him frightened. They all knew what this trial tested. It was a trial testing one¡¯s ability to kill whatever target there was without problem. There would even be creatures with higher cultivation bases than yours, greater insights into elements, and strange abilities.

    To be on the top ten list one had to be very skilled in killing others. And the one¡¯s with frightened looks had noticed the leaderboards changing and took note that there was a new number 1. And he was standing right in front of them.

    Akata didn¡¯t pay them any attention as he simply strode to the 2nd Cabin Trial which was the final Cabin Trial. He stopped just outside of the doorway and thought, ¡®I hope this doesn¡¯t change me like the last one did.¡¯ With that he took a step forward into the teleportation portal.

    When Akata opened his eyes again he could feel something cold on his wrists and ankles. When he looked down he could see that he was chained up. The chains were rusty and were covered in old blood stains, clearly they had been used before.

    When Akata looked around he found a familiar view. ¡°The Moon Forest Clan.¡± He said softly. There were people roaming around and he could also hear and see others being tortured. ¡°Humph. It seems I¡¯ll have to cleanse this place again.¡± Akata raised his arm which shook and rattled the iron chains and tried to break free. Only, he found out that his cultivation base was sealed off. He virtually had no power to break free.

    He soon heard a voice nearby. ¡°Eh? Is the runt awake finally? Hehe. Let¡¯s go take a look.¡± With a whoosh, a door swung open and revealed five different figures. Some were men some women with two being children.

    ¡°Ahaha. You finally woke up runt. You¡¯re probably wondering where you are and why you¡¯re here right now. Well I¡¯ll tell you simply. This is the Moon Forest Clan. It¡¯s not a clan that specializes in fighting, or growing medicinal plants, or anything like that. The only purpose of our clan is to¡­¡± The woman licked her lips. ¡°The purpose of our clan is simply to perfect our art of torture and collect the souls of vengeful spirits. We use those spirits to power ourselves, either by infusing them in weapons or tools or simply to consume them directly.

    To put it bluntly, you will be one of those vengeful spirits. I hope that you will resent us from the bottom of your soul and wish upon your life to seek our death if you ever make it out. But¡­ you will never see the light of the outside world. You will forever be kept and tortured here until the day you die with all of your grievances.

    You might be wondering why I¡¯m telling you this and well it¡¯s simple really. We want you to know the despair you are going to feel throughout the rest of your life. Heh. You¡¯re so young you probably don¡¯t even understand everything that I¡¯m saying. No matter. We¡¯ll teach you from this day forth. Milu, commence with the treatment.¡±

    A young boy, only about 10 years old stepped forward with a dagger in his hands. He had a grotesque smile on his face and he eyed Akata as if he were a toy. He raised the dagger to Akata¡¯s throat and slid it down until it reached his wrist. With a flick of his own wrist he sliced open a small part and watched as the blood trickled down.

    The blood seemed to give him ecstasy and he slashed again and again, over and over. Each slash would flay off a piece of skin from Akata¡¯s body. He started to laugh and continued on. At first he started off fast but then gradually slowed down. He wasn¡¯t getting tired but instead, thought about making it more painful for Akata.If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.

    After half an hour, Akata was completely bloodied up and barely any skin could be seen on his arms and some parts of his legs. The rest of the people simply watched and laughed right along with the young boy. ¡°Good.¡± The woman from earlier said. ¡°Raise him up.¡±

    With that, two men stepped up and got to either side of Akata. They pulled some levers and the chains on Akata started to move as his body was raised into the air to hang. ¡°Pilu, cut them off.¡±

    A young girl about 7 years old stepped forward with a rusty knife in her hands. She had an even colder and ugly smile on her face. She stepped up to Akata and sliced off the pants that he was wearing. Now, all of Akata¡¯s body was exposed before them. The young girl pressed the rusty knife against his skin and slid it down softly around his crotch area.

    Akata started to wiggle around intensely, trying to get the girl to stop. His wailing and screaming from having his skin slowly flayed off of his body made his voice too hoarse to even talk softly.

    The girl on the other hand seemed to feel even enticed from Akata¡¯s actions. The woman in the back simply laughed and nodded her head at the girl. The girl nodded back and with a swish, the rusty blade cut into Akata¡¯s crotch area and separated his manhood from his body.

    It fell onto the ground where it collected some dust. ¡°Fiend, come here boy.¡± The woman said and a dog appeared and ate it up with a gulp. All of the people in the room laughed. After that, they all left Akata hanging there in the air, naked and dripping blood.

    This was how life was in this trial. Every morning a group of people would come to torture him in countless different ways, and every night they would leave him to dry. They would cut off his fingers and toes sometimes, or stick small daggers in his body and leave them, or even burn his flesh until it fell of of him.

    The worst part was at the end of every week, they would treat him so that he could recover so that they could torture him alive for longer. It was a grueling cycle that persisted for many months and soon years.

    Akata simply just waited for his moment to exact revenge. Throughout all of this time, it was as if his pain tolerance was nonexistent. He felt every last feeling of torture. But even then, he didn¡¯t beg to be released, he simply endured the pain and suffering each day waiting for his chance to exact vengeance.

    He forgot how long he had been waiting, but then one day something happened. A young man walked into the place Akata was suspended. As soon as Akata saw his face, memories flitted through his mind. This was the same man from the previous trial that caused Akata to cleanse this clan in the first place.

    The young man saw him but all he did was smile a warm smile. He had an axe in his hand. He walked up to Akata and said in a warm voice, ¡°Young lad, this is just the way the world runs. Reality can be like this and well, this is your reality now.¡± With that he swung the axe and chopped off one of Akata¡¯s feet.

    ¡°Well? Do you feel resentment for us? Do you wish to kill our whole clan? You¡¯re never going to have the chance to. You¡¯ll die here like the rest of the people and creatures before you. Nothing and no one is coming to save you. It¡¯s cruel when you think about it, but this is happening not just in this clan but all over the universe. Haha.¡± The young man laughed a warm laugh as he swung and chopped off another foot.

    Akata winced and looked the old man in the eyes, conflicting emotions rising up. Finally he said, ¡°I don¡¯t have to be released and exact revenge myself. My next life I will cleanse this whole clan from this world. If I can¡¯t do it in my next life then my other life will. Who know¡¯s I might be a meteor and smash into this place, or I could be a disease that wipes this place clean. If a random death incurs just know that it was me.¡±

    Akata¡¯s voice was calm to the point of being scary. There wasn¡¯t a trace of killing intent laced within it but one could tell that Akata was very much so serious. This type of calm voice mixed in with the words caused the young man¡¯s face to turn serious. He had never encountered somebody so calm before, especially after being tortured for many years.

    All of a sudden fear started to rise up on his face. He edged backwards and then briskly walked out of the room. Akata simply watched him leave, mixed emotions on his face.

    At the end of the week, Akata was having all of his injuries healed from the week¡¯s worth of torture. Sure, he would be healed but his cultivation base was still sealed off. After being healed, he would be hung back up and would wait for morning to come for him to begin his next week¡¯s worth of torture.

    At night, the door slid open. Akata opened his eyes from his sleep to see who it was. This was strange because torture happened only in the morning when the sun was out and never when the moon was. In the doorway slipped an odd creature that was covered in scales and black skin. It had spikes protruding from its body and head.

    It walked up to Akata and then said softly, ¡°I¡¯m getting you out of here.¡± It raised its hand and its fingers turned into claws. With a swing of its claws it broke apart the chains that Akata were strapped to. Akata fell to the ground with a thud and looked up at the creature.

    It looked devilish and had an air of madness surrounding it. The creature looked at Akata and said warmly, ¡°My only wish is that you don¡¯t exact revenge, you have your whole life left and should use it to do greater things. From your actions you¡¯re more of a demon than I am. Heh. I¡¯ll bestow you with something nice then. Once you get it, leave and never return.¡±

    ¡°This clan killed and tortured my own wife before, because she wasn¡¯t apart of this clan. At the time I was afraid to get revenge and it turned me into a cold killer. But then I started to not even care about killing others and soon I had an indifference about the lives of others. But you¡­¡± The creature paused. ¡°You have a calmness that strikes the soul. It¡¯s enough to even put fear in me. You don¡¯t have to wait for your next life to cleanse this clan, I¡¯ll be the one to do it in this life. Now leave.¡±

    The creature swiped its claws in Akata¡¯s direction and a white light flashed into Akata¡¯s dantion region. Then Akata was teleported out. When he reappeared he was outside of the Second Cabin Trial.

 Chapter 122: Cultist Soulfire

    Akata could feel a devilish power rising within his dantion region. It was a power that could grow immensely strong at a fast rate. As soon as Akata felt it enter his dantion region he knew what it was. ¡®Life force! This is life force from the old man. And it seems that he was a devil kind of creature. But it feels different from regular life force, almost like there is something more to it.¡¯ All of a sudden a thought popped into Akata¡¯s head.

    The life force he had received from the old man was abundant to the extreme. In fact, Akata, before he was teleported out, saw the creature growing much older as that white light flashed into his dantion region.

    Akata willed it and his crimson rune started to take that life force and and refine it so that it would suit Akata¡¯s need. The crimson rune took it all in and seemed to transform as a devilish energy seeped out of it. The rune started to rotate by itself and soon motes of white light poured out of it and flew back to the dantion region.

    In the dantion region it made its way to Akata¡¯s cultivation base where the white motes of light gathered together and formed into small white ball. The ball settled next to Akata¡¯s mortal cultivation base where it then unfurled into a small bat winged creature. It was only the size of the hand of Akata¡¯s mortal cultivation base.

    It flew up into the air where it flew around Akata¡¯s mortal head for a few seconds then sat down next to it. It sat cross legged just like the mortal cultivation base. There, it just stayed waiting to grow stronger alongside Akata.

    With this new cultivation base, Akata was able to gain some knowledge about it. ¡®Demon Realm Imp Rank Grade 1. It seems this is a demonic cultivation base.¡¯ Akata was surprised about this and took in a quick breath. After a few moments he was back to his usual self. Now, he had three different cultivation bases.

    ¡®There¡¯s still that white pellet that was forming when I was refining that wind energy. I wonder if that is also another cultivation base? If so, If I can complete it then I will have four cultivation bases.¡¯ Akata paused his train of thought. He would have four cultivation bases. That was just unheard of. Even having two sounded crazy.

    ¡°I want to know why I have more cultivation bases than other people but I don¡¯t know who to tell. It¡¯s not easy to trust others.¡± Akata shook his head and then stepped down from the doorway. Only a few minutes had passed from being in that trial and it was still night.

    Akata made his way to his dorm room where he washed and changed into some better clothes. He had become fond of just pants and a shoulder cloak that just covered over his plant arm. His body was as tough as the 10th Grade so he didn¡¯t really need much clothes for protection.

    After changing his clothes he sat cross legged on his bed and thought about all of the trials he had been through. There were trials of battle prowess, mental fortitude, divine sense, body strength, reflexes and perception, soul power, energy control, killing, and strength of will.

    ¡°These trials are meant to shape us into some perfect warriors. If you do well in all of them, then you can be seen as a strong warrior. Enough to become a general. That¡¯s why the trials are so important.¡± Akata said softly.

    ¡°I want to go check out the Tower of Clouds. All of the top people of the sect should be there.¡± Akata stood up and then made his way back to the training field. He walked toward the tower that was in the field. To have access to the Tower of Clouds one needed to have excellent results in the Cabin Trials and also be able to battle against the 7th Grade.

    Once he confirmed with the guards that he had completed the Cabin Trials, he was granted entry into the Tower of Clouds. The Tower of Clouds also had another name, 1st Tower Trial. The tower was three stories tall and was made of stone. It was plain on the outside but had a nice view of the sect.The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

    Akata walked into the base of the tower. When he did there was a pillar in front of him that asked for some of his information. What techniques he used, what was his cultivation base at, his age, elements he had control over, etc. Akata answered it all and then a black light shot out of the pillar and into his forehead.

    This black light was actually a legacy from a Fourth Rank cultivator to help Akata grow. Akata had access to immortal legacies like the World Omen of Lord Dullahan and the Heartsoul Legacy. But those were just partial legacies that contained some of the techniques of the people who created them. They wouldn¡¯t really be able get him to the immortal realm. This, however, was an actual full legacy from a Fourth Rank cultivator! It would very much so guide Akata to the Fourth Rank.

    Akata was granted three golems that would protect him from danger. They were actually comparable to the Third Rank. They could only be used once however and wouldn¡¯t help Akata again until he surpassed them in power. But still, they were a huge trump card.

    Akata was given treasures and seals and other things that were considered material gains. Some of the important stuff he was given was a set of armor that was comparable in strength to someone midway through the Third Rank. The armor was silver but could be changed to look like anything. Another thing Akata was given was a black metal scythe. It was cold and heavy but it was powerful. It was much stronger than Akata¡¯s Bludhaven Scythe as it was a Third Rank weapon. Akata¡¯s Bludhaven Scythe was considered a First Rank weapon because it was comparable in strength to a First Rank cultivator.

    As soon as Akata touched the scythe, his crimson rune spun around and embedded a crimson pattern into it. Akata felt a new connection to it now. He felt closer to it, sort of like how he felt with his Bludhaven Scythe.

    The most important thing about this legacy, however, was the technique that was given to Akata. It was a technique that was suited for people who trained in the scythe and the soul! It was very much so suited for Akata.

    In the legacy there was actually a memory of the Fourth Rank cultivator who had come up with this technique. He wore black armor that was designed with flame patterns. He had dark scaly skin and a single horn at the top of his head. Akata simply watched the man, admiring his work and skill.

    ¡°I am Cultist Soulfire. This is my Underdark scythe art. It has 9 different arts which can be divided into 81 different skills and further divided into 729 basic movements. This is the first basic movement.¡± Cultist Soulfire put his scythe arts on display one by one and repeated each one three different times. He was meticulous in his actions and were careful to show them properly.

    Cultist Soulfire was actually a demon, which is why his given title was Cultist. But that didn¡¯t change the fact that his skill in the scythe was top notch. It guided Akata far and answered many questions he had. Once he had finished displaying the 729 basic movements he went on to the 81 different skills and then his 9 arts. These 9 arts were truly astounding. They transformed space and seemed to go through everything without any problems. The scythe wasn¡¯t just a weapon in his hand but an extension of himself.

    Akata¡¯s understanding of the scythe grew and grew until his understanding actually broke through. He could¡¯ve been seen as having a basic understanding of the scythe but now his understanding could be seen as on the levels of Halfstep Second Rank cultivators.

    He picked up his new scythe which was the Blacksoul Scythe and swung it in the air. Space seemed to make way for the scythe and it easily tore through with sheer speed. This was a straightforward attack from the first Underdark technique, Soul Swipe.

    The memory went on to explain things about the scythe and how it should be used and what for. It was all of his insights into the scythe. After it got finished with the scythe it moved onto the Outer Element of Souls.

    He explained in detail what he thought about the Element of Souls and how he learned to use it. He showed some ways in which it could be used and how it could be incorporated into scythe skills. Instantly, Akata¡¯s insights into the Outer Element of Souls improved drastically.

    Cultist Soulfire even went on to explain how the Outer Element of Souls connects with the other elements, even with the other Outer Elements. What intrigued Akata the most was the Outer Element of Khaos. It was the pair of the Outer Element of Souls and seemed to be just like it except one part.

    ¡°The Outer Elements of Souls and Khaos are a pair. There is a soul in everything. Whether that be a living being or a non living being, everything has a soul of its own. Likewise, for every piece of something, there is a piece of nothing, this balance creates khaos from the opposing forces. The Outer Elements of Souls and Khaos are omnipresent. The soul has Khaos within it and Khaos has its own soul. They are different yet they are also the same. If you can wield the soul element then likewise you can wield the khaos element.¡±

    Cultist Soulfire lifted up both his hands and a violet and crimson light twinkled within his palms. This violet light was the khaos element while the crimson light was the soul element. ¡°Separately, these elements are known as the most powerful of the Outer Elements, but together they reach a whole new level.¡± He slowly brought his two hands together and sweat could be seen on his face. Eventually they were close enough as to fuse together but then Cultist Soulfire closed his hands into fists as the lights were dispersed along with the elements.

    ¡°That¡¯s all that I have to show you. I hope that you tread far on the path that I have showed you and that you eventually come to make your own path. Good luck fellow cultist.¡± With that the memory ended.

    Akata stood there in front of the pillar shaken. That last bit with the two Outer Elements was truly mind boggling. For someone who had no clue about elements or even about the soul element would dismiss it all together. But for him, it was mind blowing. In fact it brought him a sense of anticipation.

 Chapter 123: Elemental Insights

    Akata eventually came to and started to look around. This legacy was of tremendous help to him. It wasn¡¯t so powerful so that he wouldn¡¯t be able to understand it, yet it wasn¡¯t weak either. The main part about it was that it suited him completely! What good was a powerful technique about something he didn¡¯t focus on or a weak technique that didn¡¯t improve him at all?

    Akata took in a deep breath as a warm smile came across his face. He then walked the rest of the way in the tower. He had actually been standing there for a few hours. Once inside of the tower, Akata looked around.

    The inside was made of white marble and everything inside looked completely white. There was no furniture, only mats on the ground for sitting and meditating. When Akata looked inside he saw a few people sitting on the mats. Some of these people actually looked familiar to him.

    ¡®That¡¯s Xiao Pao right there meditating.¡¯ Akata took notice of one of the figures that were seated. He looked much more mature and his cultivation base was at a much higher level than it had been in the past. ¡®He¡¯s reached the 7th Grade.¡¯

    Akata didn¡¯t disturb him as he took a seat on a nearby mat and started to meditate. The rules here were simple, meditate and focus on the legacy that you were given. Once you reached a certain level of it, you will be permitted to go to the next floor. On the third floor, however, was when a trial would take place. The trial would be different for everyone depending on what legacy you were given.

    Akata began to meditate on the legacy of Cultist Soulfire. The first time he viewed this legacy he had gained tremendous results, now that he would be going through everything meticulously, the results would be even better.

    What Akata wanted to focus on now, was his skill with the Outer Element of Souls. Many people at his age used weapons and were very proficient at it. What would give him an edge would be his skill in elements.

    Going back through the memories, Akata found the bit that talked about elements. Cultist Soulfire was better at using elements than he was in using scythes. His skill with the Inner Element of Fire and the Outer Element of Souls was what brought him fame in the first place. He described in detail how to use these two elements.

    Cultist Soulfire used magic instead of runes to make use of elements. Magic was more advanced than runes but on a general scale they could be seen as weaker as well. Akata wasn¡¯t that proficient with magic but luckily Soulfire had a knack for teaching.

    He explained step-by-step on how to control the energy in the body. Where that energy should pass through, how much should be used, what it should feel like. Everything came together. It really helped Akata to learn how to use magic better.

    In truth, the reason why Akata wasn¡¯t that good with magic was because magic used divine energy as a basis of structure. With Akata¡¯s innate skill and use of nature energy it made wielding magic much harder for him.

    Now that Akata had awakened his divine sense, using magic was as easy as creating a rune for him. After a few tries, Akata held his hand out and a ball of black and crimson flames appeared within his palm. This was his hellfire. Akata then raised his plant hand and a ball of regular fire appeared, albeit this one smaller than the hellfire.This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

    ¡°So this is how you should use magic, huh? It¡¯s much faster than creating runes and it gets right to the point in battle. With runes there is a time lag for activation, and the more powerful the attack, the longer the activation is. But at the same time, runes are also a bit more powerful.¡± Akata came to this conclusion.

    With a wave of his hand the flames disappeared. Some of the disciples in the room opened their eyes and looked toward Akata. His flames had risen the temperature in the room and awakened some of them.

    When they looked over and saw Akata, some of them were struck back with shock. This was Akata in front of them! And he was much stronger than the past. These people had seen how Akata had grown stronger than them by leaps and bounds but that was before he was punished. Now that all of this training had occurred they believed to have surpassed him immensely, but who would¡¯ve thought that he would actually keep pace with them, and actually still surpass them.

    They shook their heads and then closed their eyes to go back into meditation. Akata continued to focus on learning about elements. Learning about fire was simple since it was just an Inner Element but an Outer Element would be much harder.

    Going through the memories of Cultist Soulfire, Akata began to understand a bit more about the Outer Element of Souls. He came to understand that everything could be manipulated with this element as souls were present in literally everything.

    ¡°Outer Elements can be seen as elements that are favored by the heavens. They hold tremendous power and likewise need tremendous control. The Outer Element of Souls is no different. In fact, it needs even more control than other Outer Elements.

    The soul is the most important part of anything. Nothing can exist without a soul. To begin learning how to truly wield this element, you must come to understand your own soul. What do you believe, your dreams, your passions, fears, loves, what makes you¡­ you? All of these questions once answered will get you closer to understanding your own soul. Once you understand your own soul then you can begin to understand the souls of others.¡±

    Akata was left with a feeling of emptiness. Just what did make him up? His dreams? His loves? His fears? Looking back on himself, he didn¡¯t truly know the answer to any of these things. What he had said before were just superficial things at the moment. But now, he needed to know what he truly was, what really made him, himself.

    Sitting in silence, he began to think about it. He thought about all of the events of the past that have affected who he was. When he did the Third and Second Cabin Trial really stuck out to him. ¡®Am I really a cruel person? It felt good when I cleansed that world of the evil that was in it but was it truly the right thing to do?¡¯

    This question sounded as if it should have came from an old person on their deathbed who was reminiscing about their whole life. But it was actually coming from a 13 year old boy. This clearly showed the level his mind was at in terms of other people.

    He thought and thought and questioned himself. His actions, his thoughts, his interactions, his future. Finally he got an answer. ¡®I simply don¡¯t know just yet. Maybe I haven¡¯t lived long enough or haven¡¯t experienced much but as of this moment I don¡¯t know. If I was to say what makes me myself then it would probably be the things around me. They affect me and in turn change who I am.¡¯ This was the answer that Akata was given with much strain and thought.

    It might seem like he didn¡¯t even give an answer or that it was superficial but in reality, this answer affected him greatly. In fact, it cleared up his mind and opened a new way for him to improve himself.

    ¡®Yeah. The world around me makes me¡­ me. Just like the khaos and soul element are a pair and affect each other, the world and myself are affected in the same way. I myself affect the world and the world affects me. Just like there is a soul in khaos, there is khaos within souls.¡¯

    Realization flashed through Akata¡¯s mind as a new level of enlightenment came washing over him. It was as if he understood everything that he needed to fully wield the Element of Souls to the best of his ability. Not just that but, he actually understood everything about the Element of Khaos as well.

    As this level of understanding washed over him, a crimson and violet light emitted from his body to glow all over the place. A weird power arose from his body to awaken all of the disciples who were in the first floor of the tower. They all felt this bizarre power that was coming from Akata and they felt startled and taken back. This was simply too powerful.

    Akata¡¯s eyes snapped open and one eye was violet while the other was crimson. He stood up and the power coming from him intensified greatly. Soon people in the second floor were waking up and others near the tower were feeling the effects.

    Akata reached out both of his hands and a violet light appeared in one palm and a crimson light in the other. One pulsed with the power of khaos and the other with souls. Akata slowly brought his hands together but soon he came to and crushed the lights. The light surrounding his body vanished and the powerful pressure disappeared as well.

    Everything went back to normal as if nothing happened in the first place.

 Chapter 124: Passing Through The Floors

    Akata looked around at all of the ruffled disciples and scratched his head. ¡°Sorry about that. I got a bit carried away in my enlightenment.¡± He laughed. As he did the mat below him lit up and made his body glow with a white light. This white light gave him access to the second floor of the tower.

    Apologizing once more to the people on the first floor Akata made his way to the second floor. When he got there he saw that the people here as well were flustered and confused as to what had happened. When they saw Akata come up they knew it had to have been something because of him.

    ¡°It was you wasn¡¯t it?¡± A soft voice rang into the ears of Akata.

    He turned to see a beautiful young lady that was seated on a white mat looking at him with dreamy eyes. Akata couldn¡¯t help but wrinkle his nose as he said calmly, ¡°Yes. sorry about that fellow daoists.¡± The girl was actually Pulong Chu.

    She stood up and as she did her beautiful white robe flowed down like the clouds. ¡°It¡¯s nice to see that you¡¯re back. I¡¯m sure you just gained some huge enlightenment just now so I¡¯ll spare you the details of what I¡¯m about to say.

    The Body Spirit Exam should be coming within the next two days. If you¡¯re looking to make it to the third floor by then, then your enlightenment period on this floor better be fast. Even if you do make it to the third floor you can be kicked back down if you don¡¯t pass the trial once you get up there. Then you¡¯ll have to seek new enlightenment of something.¡±

    She pointed to a mat that was close to Akata and said, ¡°No standing around, hurry up.¡± She then sat back down and began to meditate. There were more people on the second floor than there were on the first floor. That was because even if you were good enough to make it to the third floor you could be kicked back down.

    Akata didn¡¯t waste time as he quickly strode toward the nearby mat. However, as soon as he stepped on it, it lit up with a white light. The light surrounded his body which, in turn, gave him access to the third floor.

    The disciples on this floor saw the whole thing and stood up.

    ¡°What the? He already has access to the third floor?¡±

    ¡°He just got here how is that possible?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve been here for a week and haven¡¯t been able to get to the third floor. He just shows up from the first and is already able to go to the third? He didn¡¯t even get the chance to sit down yet!¡±

    Complaints arose from most of the disciples on the second floor. Akata just waltz onto the second floor and immediately got access to the third? This was just blasphemy.

    ¡°I know you all felt that disturbance he had caused on the first floor.¡± Pulong Chu said calmly. This immediately quieted everybody down. Right. The disturbance Akata had caused even reached them who were on the second floor.

    Each floor was designed to be completely separate from the others. If the disturbance from the first floor was enough to awaken them who were on the second floor it had to be truly great. In fact, it was great enough to grant that person entry to the third floor.Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.

    They all quieted down and didn¡¯t say anything more. This was Akata they were talking about. Eventually, they ignored him and began to meditate again.

    Akata nodded his head in Pulong Chu¡¯s direction and then went upstairs to the third floor. If he already had enough enlightenment to go to the third floor what was the point in staying on the second?

    He walked up the stairs and before he could even see the top of the floor he was teleported to a different place. When he reappeared he was within an arena. There was nobody within the arena but him.

    Literally. Akata looked over and saw that there was another him in the arena across from himself. That version of himself wore a black robe and looked extremely calm. It spoke in Akata¡¯s same voice too.

    ¡°Defeat me.¡± That was all it said. Afterwards it launched itself at Akata. Akata didn¡¯t think anymore as he charged in as well. They exchanged blow after blow, matching each other''s strengths. They were very much so evenly matched.

    Akata waved his hand and caused an orange rune to appear with turned into a pillar of flames that shot toward the fake Akata. The fake Akata on the other hand caused a blue rune to appear which shot a pillar of water at the incoming flames. Both attacks dissolved into the others and vanished, only to leave behind a mist.

    The mist vanished and they stood across from each other not moving. Akata gave a harrumph as he made his new scythe appear, the Blacksoul Scythe. In response, the fake Akata did the same. They fought and fought. The two were extremely evenly matched. Whenever one did something the other would counterattack with a move that would render the former useless.

    Eventually, the fake Akata started to press the attack instead of waiting for Akata. It¡¯s moves fit perfectly together and joined into a flawless cycle. It waved its hand and numerous yellow and orange runes appeared which caused a huge fire to assault Akata. But fake Akata didn¡¯t stop there as he created huge green runes to appear that made wood spring up everywhere and burn around Akata.

    Akata started to get overwhelmed and he caused an enormous blue rune to form in the sky. All of a sudden a giant wave of water crashed down onto the arena and washed away all of the fire that was burning. This enormous rune drained a lot of Akata¡¯s energy. Water filled the arena.

    The fake Akata jumped into the air as flashing runes appeared over the stage. A spark sprang from the runes and soon a wave of lightning washed over the water that was on stage.

    Akata¡¯s eyes went wide as he caused a tan rune to appear and create a sand pillar for him to stand on. Immediately after, all of the water below was electrified from the lightning. ¡®I don¡¯t even know how to use lightning runes.¡¯ Akata thought to himself. ¡®This clone is formidable. Not only does it have all my moves and abilities, it even has my battle instincts and ideas. I can¡¯t hold back on it any longer.¡¯

    Akata¡¯s face became extremely calm. Along with that his natural energy that seeped out from him stopped flowing out of him. He was in complete control of his energy. With a flash of black light he activated his Shadowlight movement skill and was upon the fake Akata in an instant. He waved his Blacksoul Scythe and struck out with a fast blow.

    Space made way for his scythe as he used the first stance of the Underdark technique, Soul Swipe. Now that Akata had gained enlightenment regarding the soul element, this skill dramatically improved in power. A crimson light showed and enveloped the scythe.

    The fake Akata didn¡¯t turn its head as it raised its own Blacksoul Scythe. Violet light began to shine on the scythe as it smashed into the scythe in Akata¡¯s hands.

    Boom!

    The resulting clash ripped apart the air. This was a clash of not just scythes and techniques, but Outer Elements! Specifically the Outer Elements of Souls and Khaos! The clash was brief but a huge crater formed in the spot where the clash took place.

    Akata was thrown back and was left shaken. The fake Akata was also thrown back but blood could be seen dripping from its mouth. It looked at Akata for a moment then nodded its head. ¡°Good. Focus more on your knowledge and skills of elements and you¡¯ll move far.¡± With that the fake Akata vanished.

    The scene around Akata faded away as he was teleported back to the stairs. He took in a deep breath and thought back to that fight. It had been extremely tough and draining. The only reason he wasn¡¯t really injured was because he was evenly matched with himself. Fighting geniuses was easy but fighting oneself was a lot more tricky and difficult.

    ¡®I¡¯m a monster.¡¯ Akata thought to himself as he shook his head and stepped up the rest of the way to the third floor. Once he got up there he noticed the arrangement. This floor was different from the previous two floors. The previous floors were all white and had mats on the ground for meditating. But this floor however, was trimmed with gold and instead of mats there were beds.

    Upon reaching the third floor, Akata saw two other people there. Jiandan Fuza opened his eyes and glanced at him before scoffing and closing them once more. He was seated on one bed that was tucked into the corner. The other figure¡­

 Chapter 125: Bright Flower

    ¡°Akata! Is that you? I missed you so much!¡± A soft and familiar voice filled Akata ears. Before he could turn around to see the familiar face, she was already within his arms hugging him.

    Akata¡¯s heart fluttered briefly but then calmed down as he hugged her back. ¡°Peizhi Xiuying. I missed you too.¡± The last time he had saw her was when she was lifeless in his arms and he was carrying her back to the sect. It had been a huge blow to his heart and mind.

    After he had found out that she was alive, he wanted to see her as soon as possible. But then he got punished and was sent away from the sect for two months and once he got back he had to go through a series of trials in order to even reach where she was.

    But all of that was at the back of Akata¡¯s mind however, as he simply embraced her. All that mattered most was that she was alright and well.

    After a long moment they finally separated and looked at each other thoughtfully. Peizhi Xiuying looked up at Akata and said, ¡°You¡¯ve gotten taller.¡±

    ¡°And you¡¯ve gotten stronger.¡± Akata said with a smile. ¡°You¡¯ve already reached the 8th Grade of the Mortal Rank. Not only that but¡­¡± Akata started to talk quieter. ¡°Your plant seems much stronger as well. It¡¯s already above the 8th Grade as well.¡±

    Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s eyes went wide with shock. She hadn¡¯t even showed or talked about her plant, yet Akata was able to sense its presence and general strength? That wouldn¡¯t really had shocked her by itself but the fact that she hadn¡¯t used her plant in battle or showed it to anybody for the past two months was what made her mind reel.

    She pulled Akata over to the side and whispered, ¡°How¡¯d you know that? I haven¡¯t told anybody about my plant¡¯s strength and I haven¡¯t brought it out to show you?¡± She was desperately curious. If Akata had found out then how many others have as well?

    ¡°I can just sense it that¡¯s all. I actually train in nature energy and it let¡¯s me feel closer to all nature especially plants.¡± Akata said honestly. ¡°I don¡¯t really know how to explain it really. After these two months I came into a bit of luck that¡¯s all.¡± Of course Akata wouldn¡¯t let his secret of having a plant cultivation base loose.

    Peizhi Xiuying gave him a deep look then let out a relaxing breath. ¡°Well if it¡¯s like that.¡± She sighed. She had wanted to surprise Akata with it but it was no use now. ¡°Well just don¡¯t let anybody know about it.¡±

    ¡°Of course! I would never let people know the trump cards and secrets of my friends.¡± Akata laughed. Peizhi Xiuying laughed as well.

    After a bit of talking and catching up on old times and recent ones, Akata asked, ¡°So what happened to you after I returned you to the sect?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure myself. I just kind of woke up in a weak state. I was recuperating and after I was all healed up I was perfectly fine, actually a bit stronger. Then the sect started to change a lot and I rose up quite fast now here I am. That¡¯s just putting it shortly, however.¡± She said indifferently.Stolen story; please report.

    Akata looked baffled and dumbstruck. He was absolutely positive back then that Peizhi Xiuying had surely died. Not that he was wishing death upon her but, how could he mistake a dead person?

    ¡°Well on to other things. What is this floor? It¡¯s a lot different from the first two. Even getting in here was different.¡± Akata asked while looking around.

    ¡°Oh. The first two floors focus on enlightenment of the legacy you were given when you walked in. To access the third floor you have to fight with yourself. The only real way to beat yourself is to use the enlightenment that you gained.

    The fake copy of yourself is made from how you were before enlightenment, which means that you need a higher enlightenment to beat it. If your enlightenment isn¡¯t enough then either time will run out and you lose or you get defeated. Once you injure it you would have successfully ¡®beaten¡¯ it. If you don¡¯t beat it then you get kicked back down to the second floor where you have to be enlightened again.

    Only when you¡¯re strong enough to beat yourself can you get to the third and final floor. This floor lets you battle yourself in a safe environment. By sitting on the bed you can go back to that place where you battle yourself to constantly improve yourself. You can test out tactics, improve abilities, work on defensive strategies and much more. And it really helps that you battle yourself so that you basically learn twice as fast.

    Not only that but all of this happens in seemingly no time at all. The battle between yourself might last an entire day but in the real world it could be an hour. This is simply too useful. The amount of improvement that could happen is too exciting.¡± Peizhi Xiuying nearly cried out.

    Jiandan Fuza looked over and gave a snort. ¡°Humph. You¡¯re talking about improvement but you aren¡¯t even talking about the true functions of these beds. They don¡¯t only let you battle yourself but also others who sit on the beds. To battle yourself is good but to battle others is what matters most. But you have never wanted to battle me.¡± A wicked smile flashed across his face. ¡°I wonder why that is.¡±

    Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s face became cold as she looked over at Jiandan Fuza. ¡°I never wanted to battle you simply because you¡¯re no match for me. Not only that, why would I ever want to spar with you and let you see my techniques?¡± She scoffed at him.

    ¡°Hahaha. You keep saying that but I don¡¯t believe it at all. You¡¯re a trifling 8th Grade cultivator with a few secrets that all. Although you may be the second strongest disciple in this sect, you¡¯re definitely not a match for me.¡± Jiandan Fuza smiled.

    ¡°Humph.¡± Peizhi Xiuying snorted coldly and simply looked away, paying no further attention to Jiandan Fuza. ¡°Well anyways, that¡¯s how the third floor is. The more people that make it up here the better it gets actually. I believe given enough time, Pulong Chu should be here soon.¡± Peizhi Xiuying walked toward the bed that she had been on and sat down in the middle of it. ¡°Care to have a battle with me?¡± She asked calmly but the expectancy in her eyes were obvious.

    Akata couldn¡¯t help but laugh as he said, ¡°Sure, why not?¡± He made his way over to a bed that was beside Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s. The bed was was completely white, save for the golden covers on top and the gold trimmings around it. Even the wood that it was sitting on was a majestic white. As soon as he sat on it, Akata could feel the sensation of being calm.

    It was extremely comfortable and it made him naturally calm. He looked over to Peizhi Xiuying and saw that she was sitting cross legged and waiting for him to be ready. He smiled and then looked over to see Jiandan Fuza sitting cross legged as well with his eyes closed. He was clearly in a battle with himself already.

    ¡°When you¡¯re ready just connect our minds together and we should mentally warp to another place to have our battle.¡± Peizhi Xiuying said calmly while she closed her eyes.

    Akata followed her lead and also closed his eyes. It made the bed seem softer and more comfortable and he became much more calm as well. His calm mind soon drifted about as if he were dreaming. He thought of Peizhi Xiuying and soon an image of her sitting cross legged across from him appeared. He tried to interact with it and soon he could feel a connection to her. He could also feel that she had a connection with him.

    The two seemed to have one mind and that one mind drifted through who knows where and ended up at a place. Akata opened his eyes to see himself on a coastline and out stretched a vast blue ocean. It was evening and the sky looked like a warm orange color. Akata could feel the sand under him and could smell the fresh sea breeze.

    He looked across the beach to see Peizhi Xiuying looking at him. She smiled and said, ¡°When you¡¯re battling you can imagine any place and you¡¯ll end up there. This is one of my favorite places to go and train. Are you ready?¡±

    ¡°Yeah I¡¯m ready¡± Akata laughed. The sounds of waves crashing against the shore rang in his ears. They looked at each other and then began to move forward with shocking speed.

    Clash!

 Chapter 126: Flower Cultivator

    The two flashing figures collided into each other. They each punched out once and their fists med in midair.

    Akata¡¯s face was filled with surprise. Although he didn¡¯t use even half of his strength, it was still a bit close to it. Yet, even with that strength Peizhi Xiuying was still able to match his blow without faltering back in the slightest. Clearly she was holding back as well.

    Peizhi Xiuying revealed a smile as she unleashed another blow. Akata used his free hand to punch at her incoming one. His fist collided into hers, but then he felt the force that was used and was immediately pushed back.

    He looked at her with astonishment and couldn¡¯t help but say, ¡°What strength!¡± Akata¡¯s own strength was abnormal for a regular 8th Grade cultivator, he was even able to contend with 10th Grade cultivators. Yet, Peizhi Xiuying was able to push him back? What kind of strength did she possess.

    ¡®I want to see the extent she can go?¡¯ Battle intent flashed in Akata¡¯s eyes. This was the first time he had wanted to truly battle someone since he had returned to the sect. He flashed forward with an insane speed that greatly surpassed his previous one.

    Peizhi Xiuying couldn¡¯t help but wrinkle her nose a bit. ¡®His speed is really fast.¡¯ She shot forward as well in a blazing speed that was just a bit slower than Akata¡¯s own. She threw out punch after punch and soon started kicking as well. In a breath of time they exchanged numerous blows with each other.

    ¡®Not only does she have great strength, even her speed is quite fast.¡¯ Akata mused to himself as he was defending against the attacks of Peizhi Xiuying. ¡®This definitely shouldn¡¯t be her limit however. She¡¯s being way too casual. It seems that she has a lot more strength at her disposal.¡¯

    Unbeknownst to Akata, however, was that Peizhi Xiuying was having the exact same thoughts as him. ¡®How is he this strong and fast as well? Let alone 8th Grade cultivators, even 9th Grade cultivators would be outclassed by me. Yet, he¡¯s holding on with little effort. Is he really an 8th Grade cultivator?¡¯ She furrowed her brows and then backed up, creating distance between them.

    She looked Akata in the eyes. Akata looked back at her with curiosity and interest. ¡®I wonder what she has planned right now?¡¯ He thought to himself.

    ¡°Akata¡­ I want to fully test myself with you. I didn¡¯t think you would be this strong as an 8th Grade cultivator but it seems that you are. I don¡¯t trust many people in this sect anymore and out of those that I trust there¡¯s nobody that can compete with me. Only you can, so only you can fully witness my true strength. I need to improve so¡­¡± She bowed down at the waist and said sincerely, ¡°Would you please go all out and fight me.¡±

    Akata was taken aback. He didn¡¯t think Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s situation was like this. She was clearly devoted to getting stronger and was clear to make sure nobody knew her secrets. Even now, Akata couldn¡¯t see through her. He nodded his head firmly. If she was so serious then this was no time to play around.

    Akata took in a deep breath and his face became eerily calm. Calm to the point that it looked as if he was simply a corpse with no emotions whatsoever. He was actually going to take this seriously. ¡°I¡¯m not holding back you don¡¯t either.¡± He said calmly.

    Peizhi Xiuying nodded her head. ¡°Thank you.¡± She took in a deep breath and closed her eyes. After a brief period of time, they snapped open to reveal a cold glow. Her eyes felt as if they could see through one¡¯s soul and pierce it just as easily.

    They stood across from each other. Akata had a calm look on his face and Peizhi Xiuying had a cold look. The waters nearby became tranquil and started to freeze. One second they were looking in each other¡¯s eyes and the next they were at each other¡¯s throats.The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

    Peizhi Xiuying flashed with a green light and when she reappeared she was right in front of Akata. She flashed an incantation gesture and a bright blue light appeared above her hand. At the same time that it appeared, a curtain of water came raining down upon Akata. It made movement difficult and seeing also became a challenge.

    ¡®This is an illusion.¡¯ Akata was a master of illusions. His own illusions had even reached a level as being ¡®real¡¯. For him, identifying illusions was as easy as noticing a mountain. He waved his hand and caused the illusory rain to vanish without a trace. His skill in magic had truly reached new heights as he was as proficient with it as he was with runes now. He could easily use the Inner Element of Illusions with magic and dispel other illusions.

    Peizhi Xiuying furrowed her brows and then caused the blue light to change into an orange one. Instantly, fire raged everywhere. It was in the sky, on the ground, in the water. Everywhere one looked there would be fire. It actually started to burn some of the nearby plants.

    Akata once again waved his hand and caused the illusory element to appear and dispel the illusions Peizhi Xiuying tried to use. ¡°No more illusions.¡± Akata said calmly as he flashed an incantation gesture and pointed in the sky. A purple rune appeared in the sky that dazzled in the light.

    Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s brows scrunched together even further as she looked at the rune. ¡®This feels like an illusions as well.¡¯ Although her skill in identifying illusions and dispelling them weren¡¯t as great as Akata, she still had enough skill in it.

    Out of the rune appeared a giant finger that was about 3 meters long. It came crashing down toward Peizhi Xiuying with utter pressure.

    Her eyes flashed and she flashed an incantation gesture. She pointed at the finger and waved her hand. ¡°Dispel.¡± She said coldly. The finger continued on unabated as if nothing had happened. ¡®What?! It¡¯s obviously an illusion but it didn¡¯t even ripple or distort so it has to be real. But that isn¡¯t possible if it is an illusion.¡¯ Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s mind went blank for a second but then she calmed herself down and flashed another incantation gesture.

    She held a hand up in the air and a black light appeared. The light then expanded until it no longer just looked like light but a single petal. That black petal kept on growing larger and with its increasing size it brought along a freezing cold pressure.

    Bang!

    The finger continuously slowed down as it approached the black petal. With a bang it caused the petal to crack and make a ringing noise. The finger itself also cracked a bit but eventually broke through the petal¡¯s defense. But that wasn¡¯t all as a utterly cold pressure wrapped around the finger once the petal broke apart. The finger then immediately froze and fell to the ground where it shattered into tiny fragments.

    That small exchange didn¡¯t stop as Peizhi Xiuying pointed at Akata and three more black petals formed and flew in his direction. When they got close enough, she made a crushing motion. The petals burst apart and a freezing cold pressure blasted out as if to consume Akata completely. She wasn¡¯t worried about hurting Akata as your real body couldn¡¯t get hurt in this place.

    Akata felt a sense of danger from those petals and he immediately pointed out in front of him. A series of orange runes and fireballs appeared in front of him. He took in a deep breath and spoke, ¡°Et urere flammis meo.¡± The fireballs and runes instantly increased by five times. The size and temperature increased by five times and the color deepened.

    Akata was using spells. This was something he learnt from Cultist Soulfire. It was a form of enchanting that used words to increase the attributes of certain things. This was included with the lesson on elements as they had the most uses of enchantments. Unfortunately, Cultist Soulfire wasn¡¯t particularly skilled with enchanting so he only had a few spells that could be used with the fire element.

    But even so, the one¡¯s he did have made a huge difference of the fire used and made a memorable impression on Akata. One such spell let the fire actually increase in strength by five times!

    ¡°Burst.¡± He said as he clenched his hand into a fist. The same time that the petals burst apart so did the fire. A freezing blast collided with a blazing one. The two opposing forces ate at each other until they both extinguished themselves. Surprisingly, even after the spell, Akata¡¯s fire didn¡¯t overtake Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s black petals.

    ¡®This has to be a skill she learnt from the legacy she received. Knowing her previous style it should be related to plants but this is just too overpowered.¡¯ He thought to himself. But, again, Peizhi Xiuying had the exact same thoughts.

    Not stopping to understand the matter however, Peizhi Xiuying pressed her attack and waved her hand causing a black petal to fall to the ground. The petal grew and grew until it looked more like a small tree. The hundreds of black leaves on the tree scattered around and then fell to the ground. Clasping her hands together and then waving them out she said, ¡°Third Petal Transformation: Yin Tree. Fourth Petal Transformation: Yin Mist.¡±

    The black leaves settled on the ground and then numerous black plants began to spring up where the leaves landed. Along with the numerous plants that sprang up, a single black leaf appeared above Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s head. That in turn began to break apart and create a black mist that blanketed the whole surrounding area. A shockingly cold pressure rose up and froze the area.

    Akata felt his body getting stiffer. He exhaled and could see his breath in this dark mist. ¡®This isn¡¯t a normal ability. I have to be wary.¡¯ Akata suddenly got a sensation of deadly crisis and he immediately summoned his Blacksoul Scythe and blocked with it.

    Clang! A branch could be seen stretching out on the side of the scythe. Just barely missing Akata¡¯s throat.

 Chapter 127: Flower Cultivator (2)

    Akata¡¯s face tightened at the near death he just about experienced. Peizhi Xiuying was every bit an equal of his. And she was only at the 8th Grade! She wasn¡¯t like him who had multiple cultivation bases but just an 8th Grade cultivator.

    Akata¡¯s face filled with a smile and he started to laugh. It had been far too long since he had enjoyed a battle with a friend. Laughing he held his scythe up and slashed down. This simply movement was filled with his insights and cut off three other branches that were headed his way from afar. Akata turned into a black light and disappeared off into the distance.

    When he reappeared he was surrounded by a black ring of scythe-light. This was the fourth stance of the World Omen, Dark Intent Ring. Numerous branches, vines, and leaves shot at him but they were shredded once they came into contact with the black ring.

    Akata spread his nature sense out. It filled the entire beach area and he quickly located Peizhi Xiuying in the distance. He flashed with a black light and was soon in front of her. He swiped with his fastest blow, Guillotine Slice. The scythe seemed to tear through space itself to get to Peizhi Xiuying. The black mist that was everywhere split ways and made a path straight to Peizhi Xiuying.

    Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s eyes went wide with shock and confusion. ¡®How was he able to locate me? And his skill with the scythe is too incredible.¡¯ She made a grasping motion and a nearby black plant appeared in her hands. ¡°Five Elements: Metal.¡± A white bud appeared on the black plant. It bloomed and soon one would notice that it was a white rose. The white rose quickly turned metallic and so did the rest of the black plant in her hands.

    The scythe and the now black metal plant collided and sent Peizhi Xiuying flying back. After being thrown back a few meters she stabilized herself. With a wave of her hand giant leaves came and wrapped around her body. They formed a sort of leaf robe. White buds began to appear over the leaf robe and bloomed into roses. They too turned metallic and made the robe metal.

    ¡®How is she able to use the Five Elements Rose like this? Wasn¡¯t it absorbed by her Grand Life Vine? Unless her Grand Life Vine is out it shouldn¡¯t be possible for her to use it. Even if her Grand Life Vine is out she shouldn¡¯t be able to use the Five Elements Rose on other plants.¡¯ Akata¡¯s knowledge of plants had grown tremendously thanks to Noluck. It could be said that even out of the whole Divine Crystal Continent, he was one of the most knowledgeable people. But this was baffling him right now.

    Pressing his attack, Akata¡¯s figure enlarged and he was soon five meters tall. His Blacksoul Scythe also increased in size to fit him. His skill in the Red Cloud Formation had reached the core stages and he was able to change everything about his own body. That included everything that he felt to be a part of his body. The scythe had a special crimson mark on it that let Akata have a special connection to it. This was what allowed him to make the scythe any size he wanted.

    Akata strode forward and was upon Peizhi Xiuying in an instant. She was barely a quarter of his height and when he looked down it was like looking at a mere child. But then Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s body grew to a size just under Akata. She had actually fully comprehended the Red Cloud Formation technique as well.

    Peizhi Xiuying held out her other hand and another black plant came flying over which she made metallic as well. The plants would shoot out vines and branches that were as tough as metal which made them hard to deal with.

    She used these plants to attack. They would pierce, entangle, whip. and shield her. These plants were versatile which made her a strong opponent. She held the plants up and used them as a shield to guard from Akata¡¯s scythe attack.Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.

    Clang. Clang. Clang.

    Each clash would result in sparks appearing from the metal colliding. Akata would use various moves and attacks to bypass Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s defense but nothing seemed to work. And every time he did manage to get past her plant weapons, her metallic armor would bypass the damage.

    ¡°Hehe.¡± Akata¡¯s eyes showed with golden light. Peizhi Xiuying noticed this and instantly sought to create some distance between them. As soon as she backed away, Akata held out his hand. ¡°Accendat flammam hoc meum.¡± A golden light began to shine atop his palm. The ground beneath his feet trembled and broke apart. Pieces of earth gathered in his palm and began to turn into a sphere. Atop that sphere could be seen a flicker of a flame.

    Akata floated into the air and the pressure coming from his Astral Obliteration weighed down on everything. Golden light shone on everything and began to push down the black mist itself. Akata looked like a transcendent being the way he floated in the air shining with golden light. He looked down at Peizhi Xiuying and tossed his Astral Obliteration down toward her.

    It was only a toss but it sped down toward her with a blazingly fast speed. As it fell it grew in size and gathered the energy of heaven and earth to increase its speed and strength. The pressure it created grew increasingly potent as well. Not only that but it was actually covered in fire! So it brought an intense heat with it.

    Peizhi Xiuying felt crushed by the pressure and felt as if she could barely breathe. She flashed an incantation gesture and pointed at the incoming fire-bathed meteor. ¡°Grand Life Vine!¡± Peizhi Xiuying took in a deep breath as¡­ her arm transformed into a black tendril! That tendril snaked out and soon bloomed with many different white flowers. There were roses, lilies, poppies, lotuses, tulips, dandelions, etc. It was hard to imagine how many different kind of flowers there were that riddled this tendril.

    ¡°Five Elements Rose: Water and Air.¡± Instantly, some of the black plants around her bloomed with white roses. Some of the roses turned blue while the others turned yellow. The plants either turned into water or air and shot up to block the incoming meteor. It looked as if a giant geyser had exploded, sending out a large amount of water at once.

    ¡°Blessed Night Tulip: Dark Healing Heaven.¡± Some plants below sprouted white tulips that soon turned dark and emitted an aqua glow. These plants formed a shield around Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s figure. The inside of the shield constantly healed her while the outside emitted dark corrosive properties.

    ¡°Illusory Phoenix Lily: Boundless Life.¡± White lilies sprang up everywhere around Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s body and turned into a bright orange color with a hint of aqua in it. A bountiful life energy sprang up around Peizhi Xiuying and fed into her.

    ¡°Demonic Spirit Poppy: Illusions Field.¡± Poppy plants appeared on the other plants. They had dark petals with with purple centers. Waves and waves of illusions undulated in the air and rocked forth toward the incoming meteor.

    Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s whole body turned black and her eyes became green slits as she looked at the incoming meteor. ¡°Break!¡± She yelled icily. This all seemed to take a long time to do but it actually took a short breath of time.

    The blast of water and air came into contact with the fire-meteor. The fire was quickly extinguished from the meteor and the blast was so strong that it actually slowed the rock down a bit. But soon the meteor kept advancing as it was still gaining energy.

    The dark corrosive energy attack of the Blessed Night Tulip soon arrived and the top layer of the meteor was instantly shaved off. It weakened quite a bit and was slowed even more. The corrosive energy constantly ate at the meteor while the blast of water and air kept pushing against it.

    Finally, illusion after illusion came crashing into the meteor. It might not seem like illusions could do anything, but there were so many illusions that the energy from the attack actually pierced through the meteor. Peizhi Xiuying actually used mere illusions to attack! This coupled with the previous attacks greatly weakened the meteor. But even after all of that, the meteor still crashed onto the ground.

    Boom!

    The resulting smash blasted away any black mist that was left in the area. All of the black plants that were on the ground were destroyed in an instant. If it wasn¡¯t for Peizhi Xiuying greatly weakening the meteor she would have lost right then and there.

    She stood there looking at Akata as he descended back down. The life force and shield protecting her, along with her metal armor made it so that she wasn¡¯t injured in the slightest, and was actually recovering some of her strength.

    As soon as the meteor blasted down she sprang into action. Her vine arm stretched out and soon circled around Akata¡¯s body. The vine detached and at the end of it her hand held on. Her whole body was completely black and her eyes looked even colder now that they were green slits.

    Akata looked thoughtfully at her and she looked at him as well. ¡°This is my second form that I call Yinbloom after the lady who made the legacy that I have learned from. You are the only person that knows about it. Now witness its strength-¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s no need. You won¡¯t be able to beat me like that.¡± Akata said calmly while smiling faintly.

 Chapter 128: Ultimate Power

    Peizhi Xiuying looked deeply at Akata before saying coldly, ¡°What do you mean I can¡¯t beat you like this? This is my most powerful form.¡± Part of her was agitated that Akata would call her weak, especially right now. But another part was cautious at the fact that she had showed this form yet Akata wasn¡¯t even flustered or curious.

    ¡®Why is he so calm right now? Could he have been expecting this to happen? If so how? He shouldn¡¯t have any knowledge about this¡­ unless.¡± Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s eyes went slightly wide.

    Akata returned to his normal height and simply said, ¡°Attack me at your full strength.¡± He said confidently. ¡°Don¡¯t hold back I want to see all that you have. You know we can¡¯t get hurt so there¡¯s no need to hold back.¡± Akata simply stood there with his hands behind his back.

    Peizhi Xiuying gave a ¡°Humph.¡± Before gathering her energy and unleashing a strong attack. ¡°Fifth Petal Transformation: Yin Corrosion.¡± A black petal appeared in front of Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s hand. The petal then turned to dust and began to light up with black light. The light was resplendent and brought an utterly cold sensation.

    The temperature in the area instantly plummeted. The air seemed to freeze along with the ground and nearby water. The black light seemed to glow brighter and an air of destruction could faintly be felt rising within it. With a thrust of her hands forward, the black light shot forward in a berserk unbridled manner.

    Akata simply looked at it as it approached his body. He held up his arm, not his regular arm, but his golden plant arm. This was the first time he had shown it since getting it. He raised his arm toward the incoming blast. It wasn¡¯t a light blast either but was backed by the full power of Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s 8th Grade cultivation base.

    Peizhi Xiuying was still five meters tall so the beam that she launched was equally large as well. It was bigger than Akata himself. Yet he faced it with absolute calmness. He rotated his crimson rune inside of him and crimson light showed out of his golden arm.

    ¡®Souls exist in everything. Khaos exists everywhere. This crimson rune of mine is a soul rune yet there is also a bit of khaos within it that I can utilize as well. Her form is fairly new and this attack must be something she just gained enlightenment of. It isn¡¯t under her complete control just yet, so I should be able to do this.¡¯

    With his hand outstretched and the crimson light surrounding it, Akata made a grasping motion. This motion sent out the crimson light to blast against the black light. The reason Akata did this was because that black light was actually the Outer Element of Yin. He was going against the element with his own element.

    He sent it through his plant arm because just like that yin element was laced with nature energy, so was his soul element. The nature energy within the element became stronger once gone through his plant arm.

    The two elements collided and formed a sort of black sun with crimson flickers. This happened because of the nature energy that was mixed in with the elements from the two attacks. The yin element was able to make the nonexistent, illusory things in the universe and bring them into the world. The soul element was able to control the origin of life in all things in the universe. They were completely different elements but thanks to the resonation of nature energy, they were essentially combining together.

    Akata wasn¡¯t done, however, as he clenched his plant hand into a fist. This action made the black sun shrink to the size of a head in an instant. The power of the sun decreased drastically.

    Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s eyes went wide in an instant. She felt the power of the sun decrease dramatically, but what made her shocked was to find that it wasn¡¯t as simple as that. ¡®He¡­ He consumed some of my yin element! How is that possible?¡¯ She felt that the yin element she had sent out had disappeared into the element it was clashing with. ¡®Just what element is that?!¡¯This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work.

    Akata waved his hand and the sun essentially disappeared from sight. ¡®I can¡¯t absorb it into power?¡¯ Akata kept calm on the surface but inwardly he was sighing. He still didn¡¯t know much about this soul rune of his. All he was completely sure of was the fact it was definitely mysterious.

    ¡®So what if he can stop my attack as easy as flipping a hand. That doesn¡¯t mean I¡¯m no match for him.¡¯ Peizhi Xiuying gritted her teeth and was about to unleash another attack when she felt a great sensation of crisis. She focused her gaze on the spot where the black sun had just disappeared.

    All of a sudden a crimson light with faint violet sparks appeared. It grew and grew until it was a meter in size. This light seemed to draw Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s gaze toward it and caused fear to swell up within her. Sweat began to form on her forehead and her original cold face became filled with terror.

    ¡°Wha¡­ What is this thing? How can it put pure fear in my heart? No. An 8th Grade cultivator shouldn¡¯t be capable of doing this. It¡¯s impossible! How can you do this Akata?!¡± Peizhi Xiuying called out, her voice trembling.

    Akata stood with his arm pointed toward the crimson light. The sun had never really disappeared, Akata had just consumed all of the yin element in the sun which cut off all of Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s connection to it. With that he changed the soul element and made it one with the surrounding nature energy. That way it would be hard for Peizhi Xiuying to detect.

    Once that was done he used what bit of insights he had into khaos and made that energy explosive on a whole other level. Combined with the soul element it brought that explosiveness and put it completely under his control. Doing this little actually drained Akata of a lot of energy. His face paled but it still looked completely calm.

    He waved his hand forward and sent that crimson-violet light shooting toward Peizhi Xiuying. It didn¡¯t really have an intense pressure that crushed down on everything like the Astral Obliteration. It had more of a feeling of overwhelming power and authority. It made it feel like no matter what was done, this couldn¡¯t be stopped at all.

    Peizhi Xiuying took one look at this and she couldn¡¯t stop shaking. A smile was upon her face as she watched it come closer to her. The trembling seemed to come unconsciously and without thought, but she was actually quite calm right now. ¡®So that¡¯s why I can never beat him. He¡¯s just too strong.¡¯ Peizhi Xiuying closed her eyes and the crimson-violet light engulfed her body.

    She opened her eyes and looked over at Akata who was sitting on the bed. He soon opened his eyes and looked over at Peizhi Xiuying. Her eyes were warm when they looked at him. Akata smiled and said, ¡°Thanks for the battle!¡±

    ¡°Same. What was that?¡± Peizhi Xiuying immediately asked. She had even used her other form to fight Akata and was immediately defeated by Akata with ease. That kind of power was truly terrifying.

    Akata looked deeply at her with a thoughtful expression. ¡°Hmm. If you tell me what that was then I¡¯ll tell you.¡± He gave a faint smile and said.

    Thinking of the pros and cons, Peizhi Xiuying hesitatingly said, ¡°Nevermind then. It¡¯s best to keep these kind of secrets to ourselves.¡±

    Akata just shrugged his shoulders, not caring either way. His ¡®secret¡¯ was just control over the Outer Elements of Souls and Khaos. Besides that, he had some guesses as to what Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s secret was.

    ¡°I¡¯m thinking that it was a secret art that lets her combine with her plant and unleash a great amount of power for a period of time. What do you think about it?¡± Akata asked Noluck.

    ¡°I can definitely tell that she isn¡¯t a true plant cultivator like you or me. So that seems to be the only option left. But, it¡¯s just that the only people that have access to techniques like this are monstrously powerful sects.

    This sect on the outside and even sometimes on the inside doesn¡¯t even seem to be strong at all. But the techniques and trials and other things that they have access to makes it seem otherwise. Maybe this was once a truly powerful sect that declined to what it is today. They could just be using all the resources they have left in order to make sure they will survive this war.¡± Noluck simply stated.

    ¡°Mn. That sounds possible.¡± Akata agreed.

    ¡°Humph. I¡¯m still just waiting on a worthy opponent for me. How about you try your luck?¡± Jiandan Fuza spoke highly.

    Akata snapped back into reality and looked at Jiandan Fuza calmly. ¡°Eh? Well if you-¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll take you on. Akata you can just watch. There¡¯s no need to dirty your hands.¡± Peizhi Xiuying said coldly.

    Jiandan Fuza simply looked over and chuckled. ¡°So you finally wish to fight me? Haha! Excellent. I¡¯ve been waiting to battle the new second strongest cultivator since you earned that title. Time to see if everyone below me really is trash. Come come let¡¯s start right now.¡± He closed his eyes and waited for Peizhi Xiuying to get ready.

    ¡°Humph. Akata you can connect to our battle just so you can view. Just do the same thing as before but connect to me and Jiandan Fuza.¡± With that she closed her eyes.

    Akata was quite curious about Jiandan Fuza. He had been number 1 in the sect before he left and even after he got back he was still considered number 1. Obviously he had to have some skill for him to be considered that. Akata closed his eyes and began to connect mentally to Peizhi Xiuying and Jiandan Fuza.

    Before they were all connected, however, a voice interrupted them. ¡°Can I join in with you guys?¡± A soft voice rang into the ears of the three of them.

 Chapter 129: Familiar Sensation

    Dragging their consciousness back to their bodies, all three of them looked at the source of the voice. However, before they even looked at the figure they all knew who it was. Once they opened their eyes, they saw a young female with flowy white robes and jade skin.

    ¡°Ah. Pulong Chu, it¡¯s nice to see that you have finally made it here. Ahaha. How about we change this up a bit then hehe, Let¡¯s turn this one on one battle into a two on two? Pulong Chu can be on my team.¡± Jiandan Fuza said calmly.

    Akata glanced at Pulong Chu then looked at Peizhi Xiuying. She looked back at him and nodded her head. ¡°I wouldn¡¯t mind a two on two battle.¡± Peizhi Xiuying said coldly as she looked at Jiandan Fuza.

    ¡°I agree to it as well.¡± Both Akata and Pulong Chu agreed as well. Pulong Chu didn¡¯t really know what this third floor was used for but after Jiandan Fuza spoke she could more or less guess at the use.

    ¡°Just sit on a bed and connect your consciousness to all of us. We¡¯ll form our teams while in the area. By the way, I¡¯m choosing the area.¡± Jiandan Fuza said.

    Peizhi Xiuying frowned and nodded her head in agreement. Akata didn¡¯t really care and agreed as well. After that, Pulong Chu sat on a bed and closed her eyes. All four of them began to connect to each other¡¯s consciousness.

    It only took a brief moment for this to happen and soon all of them could feel the existence of the others. When they opened their eyes they all looked around at the place that Jiandan Fuza had chosen for them to battle in. It was just a plain field with earthen yellow grass. There were sparse white clouds in the blue sky and a yellow sun in the air.

    ¡®It¡¯s a really simple place.¡¯ Akata thought to himself as he looked around. The other two had the same thought as they looked around.

    ¡°I like to keep things simple. There should be no problems with this place, right?¡± Jiandan Fuza looked around at the other three. ¡°Alright then. Let¡¯s get into teams shall we? Pulong Chu let¡¯s take this side.¡±

    Pulong Chu and Jiandan Fuza took one side while Akata and Peizhi Xiuying took to the other side. Looking at each other they wasted no more time. Although Akata and Peizhi Xiuying had just gotten back from a battle of their own, the beds were special as to recover their mental strength at a really fast rate. Not to mention Akata¡¯s immense amount of mental energy.

    ¡°Let¡¯s start.¡± Jiandan Fuza waved his hand as a white light covered over his palms. The white light turned into a mist that shot out toward Peizhi Xiuying. He really didn¡¯t care about the others. Peizhi Xiuying was the second ranked and so she brought the most interest toward him.

    Just before Peizhi Xiuying was about to take on the white mist, Akata smiled and said, ¡°I¡¯ll take him on.¡± He held up his arm and a red mist emitted from it as it shot toward the white mist. The two mists then entangled upon each other, shredding each other apart.

    Jiandan Fuza frowned upon seeing Akata engage him instead of Peizhi Xiuying. He didn¡¯t put Akata anywhere in his mind. Disdain flashed across his face but then quickly disappeared. ¡°You¡¯re Akata, right? Ming Lu talked to me about you before. At the time I wasn¡¯t really interested in you. Even now, you don¡¯t interest me at the moment. So how about you let me fight with Peizhi Xiuying?¡±

    ¡°Haha. Shouldn¡¯t you let the girls fight each other? Or are you too scared to fight me?¡± Akata said calmly.

    Jiandan Fuza just looked calmly at Akata for a moment before chuckling. ¡°Fine then. Let us battle. Pulong Chu, I¡¯m sure you can handle Peizhi Xiuying.¡± Jiandan Fuza took a step forward and made a grasping motion with his hand.If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.

    The white mist that was entangled with the red mist soon became larger and then consumed the red mist. It then changed directions and went for Akata¡¯s figure. Akata furrowed his eyebrows and turned into a black light as he quickly dodged the incoming white mist.

    Jiandan Fuza looked thoughtfully at the speed Akata had just displayed and then waved his finger. That finger wave sent the white mist to change directions. When Akata reappeared off in the distance, he could see the mist already closing in on him.

    ¡®He¡¯s able to track my movements?¡¯ Akata as surprised and then once more changed into a black light as he disappeared.

    Jiandan Fuza just stood in place and smiled. He then turned around with a blazingly fast speed and struck out with a fist. Suddenly, Akata reappeared right in front of the fist strike.

    Bang!

    Their fists collided with each other¡¯s and Akata had to take multiple steps back to stabilize himself. ¡®Not only did he track and anticipate my movements, he also had the speed to counterattack. His strength is definitely not lacking either.¡¯ Akata quickly analyzed the situation.

    ¡®Hm. He¡¯s not that much of some trash. I guess I can play with him a bit longer before I destroy him.¡¯ A wicked look flashed in Jiandan Fuza¡¯s eyes before quickly fading away. He took a step forward as white light emanated off of his body. His eyes flashed with white light and he raised his hand. This all caused a white mist to appear on top of his palm.

    Akata got a familiar sensation from Jiandan Fuza¡¯s actions when he saw it. ¡®This is like when I use my own runes. No. It¡¯s a bit different from when I do it. I can¡¯t really figure it out though.¡¯ Crimson light sprang up around Akata¡¯s body and flashed through his eyes. He held his hand up as a ball of black and crimson hellfire appeared in his palms.

    Jiandan Fuza furrowed his brows and stopped advancing. ¡°What is that?¡± He asked solemnly.

    The sudden stop surprised Akata and he forced himself to discontinue his actions. ¡°What is what?¡±

    ¡°That crimson light shining off of you? Are you¡­ No impossible it can never happen to anyone else. I¡¯m the only blessed one on this planet¡± Jiandan Fuza waved his hand sending that white mist to fly towards Akata.

    Akata threw his hellfire towards the white mist and the resulting clash made the two enlarge. The mist fueled the hellfire while the hellfire expanded the mist. Akata furrowed his brows further as he sensed a familiar feeling. ¡®He¡¯s using an Outer Element. From the sensations it should be the Outer Element of Yang.¡¯ Although Akata hadn¡¯t had contact with all of the Outer Elements, he could still identify some of them.

    For instance, because he had come into contact with the Outer Element of Yin, he could tell that the element Jiandan Fuza was using was the complete opposite of it. Therefore it could only be the Outer Element of Yang.

    ¡®The yin and yang elements are all about creation. The yin element focuses on making the illusory things in the universe real. The yang element, however, makes completely new things real.¡¯ Quickly, identifying the element and its uses, Akata thought of a way to counter it.

    ¡®Eh? This feels like an Outer Element. Does he really have control of an Outer Element? But he¡¯s just supposed to be trash. It¡¯s already considered a rare thing for people of our age and cultivation level to even know about Outer Elements, yet he has control of one. Just what is it?¡¯ Jiandan Fuza no longer smiled as he pointed at the white mist that was constantly attacking the black hellfire. ¡°Water.¡±

    The white mist responded to his commands and seemed to take on a new shape, form, texture, look, etc. It was transforming into a completely different thing. The white water consumed the hellfire and then went on towards Akata.

    ¡®Just like that he countered my hellfire. It is weak but it shouldn¡¯t have been that easy to counter it.¡¯ Blazing black hellfire rose from Akata¡¯s body. This time, crimson flickers could be seen more abundantly and they gave off a weird feeling to everyone in the vicinity. Even Pulong Chu and Peizhi Xiuying looked over.

    ¡®Just what is that fire?¡¯ They both thought as they looked at the black flames.

    ¡°Et urere flammis meo.¡± The dark flames around Akata¡¯s body suddenly became pitch black and the heat increased by five times. The black hellfire became much more chaotic and seemed to grow out of control. This was only visually though, as the hellfire was simply a part of Akata. More like an extension of himself, it was under his complete control.

    A crimson light sprang up around his body as the crimson flickers on the black hellfire grew more abundant and fierce. He was adding the soul element to the hellfire.

    The white water that was approaching him simply faded away into motes of light as it couldn¡¯t stand up to the heat that was being given off by the hellfire. The motes of light then was absorbed by the hellfire.

    ¡®What is happening?! He just absorbed my attack.¡¯ Jiandan Fuza¡¯s mind reeled as he saw this. Suddenly his eyes went cold and a shocking killing intent appeared. A white mist sprang from his body and covered over the area. The white mist was freezing and soon the ground became frozen.

    The freezing white mist and the burning black hellfire caused a shocking contrast in the surrounding temperature. Both Pulong Chu and Peizhi Xiuying were affected by it and had to stop their battle to defend against it. A shockwave blasted out and sent them flying back a few meters.

    Akata¡¯s face became extremely calm as he looked at Jiandan Fuza. Jiandan Fuza on the other hand looked crazed and cold. It was totally different from his usual normal appearance. They stared at each other for a moment before finally raising their hand and pointing at the other.

    Whoosh!

    The white water and black hellfire were sent hurdling towards each other in shocking fashion and speed. They didn¡¯t clash, however, and instead bypassed each other. That was because they were headed toward Jiandan Fuza and Akata directly!

 Chapter 130: The Kudzu Appears

    Whoosh! Whoosh! The white water and black hellfire were hurdling straight for Akata and Jiandan Fuza respectively. Both of them had just launched attacks and had to defend rather quickly.

    Akata held up a hand and a purple rune about the size of his body appeared in front of him. It twinkled for a bit and then a large palm made its way out of rune. The palm faced the white water head on and directly blocked the water for a little bit. But almost as soon as it did, it froze on the spot and crumbled into pieces. It was only able to block a tiny bit of the water for a short amount of time. But that was enough time for Akata to gain some distance away and prepare to fully defend against it now.

    ¡®I¡¯ve already looked into the soul of this skill and know its uses. I know its strengths and weaknesses and I should be able to defend against it. If our cultivation was a lot closer then I would be completely confident in crushing it. But his use of this element is interesting and it greatly enhances his strength.¡¯ Akata thought to himself.

    Everyone used elements differently from each other. Many people could use the earth element but some might be more proficient in creating walls while others could have more skill in erecting mountains. It was a slight difference but that difference made it so that others had to adapt to that different skill.

    Outer Elements were even more frightful as they had much more different ways to be used. These ways of being used were the difference between your opponent being able to counter you or not. Akata¡¯s way of using his soul element was relatively basic, but as he grew and learned more about it, he would have his own way of using it. For now, all he could do was use the souls of objects for his own use. This included absorbing them and ¡®reading¡¯ the memories of them.

    ¡®Jiandan Fuza uses his yang element to make his attacks take on a cold, watery form. But, there¡¯s something else as well. I can¡¯t seem to get the full understanding on it right now. I guess I have to wait until he unleashes it.¡¯ Akata could only gain basic info of techniques that he had been exposed to. He didn¡¯t have the skill yet to try and get information on other things he had yet to see and experience.

    Golden light shined out of Akata¡¯s body as he held his hand forward. He had been slowly gaining knowledge regarding the use of his golden rune. Golden light shone brightly from his hand and covered over the incoming water. He took in a deep breath and slowly clenched his hand into a fist. This simple motion caused the white water to shudder violently and decrease in speed drastically. His hand fully closed into a fist and the water finally exploded outward. In its place could be seen an illusory rock that emanated shocking pressure. Akata then calmly looked over towards Jiandan Fuza.

    Jiandan Fuza had it a bit easier than Akata. The black hellfire that was heading for him didn¡¯t even seem to interest him as he wiped it away with a swipe of his hand. That swipe contained the power of the yang element. The hellfire froze from the inside until it was nothing but icicles. It then just fell and shattered to the ground. He had a crazed look on his face the whole time.

    ¡°Ahaha. Akata let¡¯s stop playing around!¡± He waved his hand and white water swirled around his body in a chaotic manner. The temperature in the area dropped even more to the point the the grass in the distance started to freeze up.

    ¡°Let me show you my true power.¡± A crazed smile appeared on Jiandan Fuza¡¯s face as he lifted his hands in the air. ¡°Water is the main element my clan uses because it is calm and basic. But me on the other hand, I like things to be unpredictable and filled with utter khaos. Hehe. That¡¯s why I taught myself this.¡± A boom could be heard coming from his body and all of a sudden a stream of water that was circling him became slim. A crackle of electricity then sparked from it and soon electricity could be seen all over it.Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.

    This happened to all of the rest of the water that was encircling his body and soon his body was covered with electricity. He looked as if he were an electric deity of some sort that was just bathing in lightning. This lightning was white and brought along a freezing temperature. ¡°Ahaha!¡± With a laugh, Jiandan Fuza pointed in Akata direction. ¡°Take my attack!¡±

    Zip! A streak of cold white lightning flashed toward Akata. The lightning itself was fast already but the coldness in the area made it harder to move about. Akata could feel a strong yang energy within the lightning and new this was a dangerous situation. He took in a deep breath and then lifted up his plant arm.

    The plant arm was originally hidden by his cloak but now it could be seen. It was completely golden in color and a thick golden vine could be seen covering it. Ever since he had gained complete understanding of his body, Akata¡¯s plant arm had taken on a huge change.

    The vine that covered his arm wasn¡¯t like a regular vine that had looked sort of like a rope, but looked more like a blanket of leaves and tendrils. Holding his arm up, the vine shot out to appear in front of Akata¡¯s body and surround him. Boom! The lightning slammed into the golden vine where it trembled vigorously and darkened a bit, but still held on.

    ¡°Eh?¡± Jiandan Fuza¡¯s face became filled with disbelief and his eye twitched. Giving a cold snort he allowed his lightning to branch out and rain in all directions around him. As it did, he took steps forward to get closer to Akata. The lightning flashed everywhere and hit anything around it in an unpredictable manner. This was a type of defensive and offensive attack Jiandan Fuza had come up with. With this, he didn¡¯t really have to focus on attacking or defending. And it made it harder on the opponent because they didn¡¯t know when the attack would be coming.

    The white lightning kept on repeatedly slamming on the vine shield that surrounded Akata¡¯s body. It hit in different locations each time with a strong force. The golden light on the vine would dim each time it was hit.

    Akata was standing within the gold vines unperturbed about the situation outside. Inside it was as if nothing was happening. He couldn¡¯t hear the booms of the lightning slamming into the vines or feel the effects of it. The vine was basically acting as an isolation barrier for him. He could use the nature energy that emanated off of the vine to help spread out his nature sense to see what was happening outside. As the vines were hit, he could feel that they were weakening.

    ¡®They won¡¯t last much longer. I¡¯ll have to make a risky move in order to get out of this situation.¡¯ Akata thought to himself. The difference between cultivation was just too great. Jiandan Fuza didn¡¯t have insane speed like Alabasta did. And he didn¡¯t have overwhelming power like Tabet had. But he did have considerable skill and knowledge. Unlike beasts, mortals were much smarter and therefore much more deadly when fighting against. If Jiandan Fuza had the same strength and speed as Alabasta and Tabet, Akata definitely wouldn¡¯t have stood a chance.

    Akata gathered the nature energy in the surrounding area and focused it on the vine. ¡®Here it goes.¡¯ The vine suddenly illuminated brightly and then started to grow explosively. In an instant it spread out to cover an area of 30 meters and was still expanding at a fast rate.

    The golden vines encompassed a wide area. They surrounded much of the visible fighting area. In fact it spread out to over 299 meters in total! The maximum distance that Akata could spread his nature sense.

    Akata could feel every living and nonliving thing within this field of vines. It was like a whole new feeling for him. This was actually Akata¡¯s first time trying this out as he had never really wanted to use his plant arm before. He wasn¡¯t confident in using it in battle and therefore decided to slowly become accustomed to it. But now, he was pushed to the edge and had no other choice but to try and use it to escape Jiandan Fuza¡¯s furious attack.

    Whoosh! The vine blanketed the entire region in an instant causing everything to shine with a golden luster. Not only was Akata able to feel the existence of everybody here, he could feel the elements in the area. It was like he had a special connection to them.

    ¡®Just what is this vine? I haven¡¯t ever seen a plant of this level before. The strength it has now is weak but the profundity behind it is on a whole different level than what I¡¯m used to. This plant is¡­ it¡¯s simply too high of a level.¡¯ Noluck couldn¡¯t even find the words to describe what he was witnessing right now. He had always wondered about Akata¡¯s plant arm and why it was so different from other plant-based lifeforms but he wasn¡¯t able to inspect it at all. Thus he could only witness what Akata would unleash.

    Akata, on the other hand, had thoroughly inspected his arm and had extensive knowledge about it. When he was blessed with the plant arm it was as if new information regarding it had seeped into his mind, he just had never planned on sticking with the arm so he paid it no attention. But now, things were different. He had come to accept this arm of his.

    A slight smile appeared on Akata¡¯s calm face. ¡°Experience the power of my¡­ kudzu vine!¡± He yelled out towards Jiandan Fuza.

 Chapter 131: Devastation

    ¡°Experience the power of my kudzu vine!¡± Akata yelled out. The golden kudzu vines emitted a weird shrill sound as they all of a sudden turned into an azure color. Akata lifted an eyebrow because he felt a weird feeling coming. Then, just as they turned azure, they started to consume everything they covered over. The grass that was on the ground before dried up and wilted into nothing. The various rocks that littered the ground eroded at a fast rate until they were nothing but dust. The trees, bushes, flowers, soil¡ªthey all were consumed by the kudzu vine.

    Noluck and Akata were both taken aback from this. This arm was bestowed upon by nature, yet when used, it would destroy it? This was Akata¡¯s first time trying out this skill so he didn¡¯t no the effects of it at all. But after seeing this he nearly blanched and stopped it. This wasn¡¯t supposed to happen.

    These two weren¡¯t the only ones that were in shock. Peizhi Xiuying, Pulong Chu, and Jiandan Fuza stood in shock, staring at the field of azure vines. They couldn¡¯t believe all of the destruction that had just occurred in the blink of an eye. And it came from Akata!

    Jiandan Fuza¡¯s shock only lasted for a bit before he nearly laughed out crazily. ¡°Ahaha! Now that is some khaotic power right there! I have to see more of it, show me more!¡± As he laughed, white lightning danced around his body, bringing a chilling sensation to the area. It struck at the surrounding vines and as it did, they grew darker and darker.

    Akata wanted to fight back but he didn''t know what was happening with his vines. As soon as they had turned azure it was as if they were out of his control. He had no idea what to do right now. Luckily the vines couldn''t spread out further otherwise there would be even more destruction. Akata had always had a passion for nature, but ever since he gained a plant cultivation base his passion grew to a whole new level. Almost as if nature was his child and he had to take care of it. This was a feeling all plant cultivators would have and Akata was no different.

    Akata looked out at the field and his face soon turned into one of determination. He fully rotated his plant cultivation base and spread out his nature sense upon the azure vines. He nature sense was powerful, especially when he used it in conjunction with his plant cultivation base. The nature sense became rough and battered against the azure vines with a powerful intent. This was Akata¡¯s intent. He was forcing his will into the vines to forcefully take control of the vines. If this didn¡¯t work then he would just have to destroy it.

    Akata spoke through his nature sense with a booming and enforcing voice. Nobody could hear him speak but the plants and the rest of nature seemed moved by his will. ¡°Heed my command! Follow my will.¡± All of nature went still as even the wind didn¡¯t blow anymore. The most still of all, however, was the azure vine. Everything went silent in an instant.

    The azure vine seemed to be struggling to break free from Akata¡¯s nature intent and looked to be on the verge of freeing itself from it. Akata gave a cold snort and his eyes flashed with a gold and crimson tint. A huge explosion of power erupted through the nature sense and quickly calmed down the azure vine.

    ¡°You¡¯re under my control.¡± Akata said calmly through his nature sense. The azure vine submitted quietly and soon retreated back to Akata¡¯s plant arm. Akata looked at his plant arm and saw that it was still golden, but his vine was now an eerie azure color. Akata looked closely at it for a moment and then turned his head away.

    Upon looking at the field his eyes widened. There was literally nothing in the area. It looked as if a giant meteor had came through and thoroughly destroyed that single space of 299 meters. Not even Akata¡¯s Astral Obliteration could destroy so much so thoroughly with just one attack.If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

    The trees, soil, grass, bushes, rocks, and other things in the area had all disappeared without a trace. This was a kind of destruction on a fundamental level. In fact, this was power that couldn¡¯t even comprehended on their level of power, let alone be used. Not even Akata could understand what kind of power was needed to destroy so much so quickly.

    ¡®I couldn¡¯t control that vine at all. It was like it had a mind of its own. There¡¯s no possible way that I could have the power to do something like this. I don¡¯t even think the Elders can do something of this level so quickly.¡¯ Akata was frightened of this. This was just too much power for him to handle. Luckily, nobody was injured in that berserk attack or worse¡ªdead.

    Jiandan Fuza looked at the desolate ¡®field¡¯ and couldn¡¯t help but shudder. Even he couldn¡¯t comprehend this type of power. He looked at it for a long moment before turning his head to Akata. ¡°In my life I had always grown up to be a normal basic kind of person so that I could cultivate in the ways of my clan. But I always wanted more khaotic power. Something that was overwhelmingly power and random. This drive actually altered the way that I think and now when I get into a good fight I lose myself and become wild and crazy. But the power that you just used¡­ I¡­ I can¡¯t handle that. I wouldn¡¯t want to use that kind of power.¡±

    Jiandan Fuza was so shaken that he could barely speak clearly. A vision of him being covered by that azure vine and then disappearing from this life kept popping into his head. After another long moment he took a deep breath and then exited the field.

    Akata just stood there befuddled. He didn¡¯t know what to make of this situation. He had gained some good combat experience and figured out what his vine could do, but it was something he didn¡¯t want to use. Sure it was strong, but he couldn¡¯t control it. Not to mention the fact that the vine harmed nature; harming nature went against his moral code.

    ¡°Akata¡­ What was that just now?¡± Peizhi Xiuying asked quietly. Pulong Chu looked at him, expectant of an answer as well. They both looked at Akata awaiting for his answer to the question.

    ¡°I don¡¯t really know. This is the first time that I actually used this.¡± Akata didn¡¯t really know what to say himself. He didn¡¯t even understand it so how could he explain it to others?

    Pulong Chu gave him a long look then sighed as she exited the field as well. Peizhi Xiuying gave Akata a look as well before exiting. This left Akata all alone.

    He looked at his arm for a long moment. ¡°What was that Noluck?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know. I¡¯ve never seen anything like that before. I know that nature bestowed you with this arm but it wouldn¡¯t allow for this arm to destroy nature. That would be contradicting its own role. You should hold on with using that power for now until we know more about it.¡± Noluck said solemnly.

    Akata stared at his azure vine that was wrapped around his golden plant arm for a long moment. After that he closed his eyes and disappeared himself. When he opened his eyes again he was sitting on top of the bed.

    Pulong Chu was on her bed with her eyes closed. Clearly, she was training by herself at the moment. This was her first time on the third floor after all. Jiandan Fuza was gone from the room.

    ¡°Jiandan Fuza was already gone when we came back.¡± Peizhi Xiuying said. She was seated on her bed that was next to Akata¡¯s. Giving him a deep look she smiled. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. So you have a power that you aren¡¯t used to yet, just keep training in it and you¡¯ll eventually learn to have it under your control.¡± She said warmly.

    Akata gave a slight smile and nodded. ¡°Thanks Peizhi Xiuying. I think I¡¯m going to practice some more right now by myself.¡±

    ¡°Mn. Okay. Be sure to come back out though because the Body Spirit Exam and Red Cloud Sparring Day are coming soon.¡± Peizhi Xiuying said.

    ¡°Mn.¡± Akata nodded once more then closed his eyes to go into his own mental realm. He appeared in a desolate area. There was no grass, plants, or any kind of vegetation in the area. Akata surveyed this land for a while before nodding his head.

    ¡®This way nature won¡¯t be harmed as much.¡¯ Akata mused to himself. He then held out his golden arm and looked at the azure vine that was wrapped around it. He took in a deep breath and his eyes became completely focused.

    With a wave of his hand the azure vine unwrapped itself and then surrounded his body. It seemed to be moving to his command but in reality, Akata had no control over it whatsoever. The only thing he could do was force it to come back to him and release it. What happened in between wasn¡¯t up to him at all.

    Akata frowned at the vine. ¡®Why can¡¯t I control it? I felt like I had control over it when it was golden but since it turned azure it hasn¡¯t been listening to my will at all.¡¯ Akata soon became frustrated. ¡®Humph. I¡¯ll make it listen to my command.¡¯

 Chapter 132: The Four Moons

    Akata stood in the desolate field thinking of ways to take control over the azure vine. The vine seemed to dance around the field as it ¡®moved¡¯ with Akata¡¯s will. Given his strength as a plant cultivator, it should¡¯ve been an easy matter for him to take control of this plant. The only reason it wouldn¡¯t follow his orders would be if¡­

    ¡°This¡­ this vine must be stronger than I am. Considering the strength that it let out before I can believe that. But¡­ just how strong is it actually? Will I ever be able to control this power?¡± Akata mused to himself with a solemn look on his face. If the vine was much stronger than himself then it wouldn¡¯t want to listen to his commands. The only solution he would have would be to get stronger. After a bit of thought, Akata decided to try other things as well.

    ¡®Humph. We¡¯ll see then.¡¯ He snorted and his eyes became cold. Once Akata found disgust in something, it would be easy for him to become cold and merciless. He was going to attempt to force this vine to submit fully to him, and to do that he needed all of his power. The disgust he found was the way it destroyed all of the vegetation in the previous battle.

    A cold air began to rise in the desolate arena that Akata was in. It seemed to penetrate everything but in reality it was focused on the azure vine completely. The vine felt this and went stiff for a moment before finally spreading out and attacking Akata head on. It was actually going to fight back!

    Akata raised his hand as a gold and crimson light shone in it. ¡°You¡¯ll follow me one way or another.¡± Akata said coldly. He then threw the ball of light towards the vine. At the same time, the vine emitted a weird shrieking sound that shook the land that it was on. The ground crumbled and was consumed. It took in that energy and began to shine with a bright azure before charging towards Akata¡¯s figure.

    Boom!

    Peizhi Xiuying was walking through the sect. It had been a couple of days since the battle with Akata, Pulong Chu, and Jiandan Fuza. She had been in the Tower of Clouds for a while and decided that it was best to rest up. In these couple of days, she had visited Misty Forest and meditated on the various plant life that dwelled in there. Given her strength, she was able to easily traverse the forest, yet, only to the Middle Ring. Surprisingly, the beasts in that forest were still too tough for her. She still didn¡¯t know what was in the center of the forest. She couldn''t make it to the Inner Ring let alone make it to the center.

    ¡®One day I want to go to the very center of that forest just to see what it holds.¡¯ She thought to herself as she walked through the sect. It was noon and the setting sun made her jade skin seem especially beautiful.

    As she was walking she heard a bit of a ruckus by the entrance of the sect. Disciples even started to run over to see the commotion. ¡®What¡¯s going on over there?¡¯ She wondered to herself. She walked slowly and flawlessly, every step taken by her looked to make her glide across the ground.

    ¡®Eh?¡¯ When she looked at the entrance she could easily make out three figures in the distance that were imposing. They all wore armor and were clearly not from the sect. ¡®Who are they?¡¯ She got a bit closer and once she did she could recognize the attire they had on. They all had on white armor and each of them had a moon insignia on their chest.

    ¡®They have the same armor as that person from before. Could they be here to get him back? Or is it something else?¡¯ Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s mind fluttered. Even though she had gotten much stronger, she knew that she was definitely not a match for the people right there.

    ¡®Should I go and ask an Elder for help? No, they should already know what is going on.¡¯ Her mind raced and she couldn¡¯t think of what to do at the moment. ¡®I should at least try to protect the disciples until the Elder¡¯s arrive.¡¯ She thought to herself. With a cold look on her face she made her way over.This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

    ¡°This trifling sect is nothing, simply trash. Where the fuck is your Sect Leader at? Get your ass out here! Bring us Jiandan Zhou and we¡¯ll maybe consider letting your sect off easily. We¡¯ll only kill around fifty or so disciples. Hehe. We do have to wait for the war so we can¡¯t destroy everything by ourselves.¡± A loud booming voice echoed throughout the sect and Purple Sky City. It alerted many residents and all of the disciples in the area.

    The man waited for a moment but no response came. ¡°Eh? Still not coming out huh? Well we can just begin the annihilation now then. Third Moon, take them out.¡± The man looked over to one of the people behind him and said.

    The man called Third Moon nodded his head and raised his hand into the air. A silver light began to coalesce inside of his palm and shine out. The sky above grew darker, as if night was approaching at a fast rate. The silver light turned into the image of a half moon. ¡°All of you can die now. Lawless Ni-¡±

    Before the man named Third Moon could finish his words, he came to a halt. His eyes constricted heavily and he didn¡¯t speak any further. He looked around at the crowd and then to the man that was speaking before.

    ¡°What? Continue you imbecile.¡± The man said with a displeased look. ¡°Hurry up and¡­¡± Then his eyes went wide as well. Third Moon slowly sank to the ground as his head fell from his shoulders. As soon as his head fell to the ground, the rest of his body broke apart as well. Literally. Millions of pieces of his body just dropped to the ground as if it were chopped up. There was no blood as it looked to be completely taken away. He had died in an instant.

    ¡°Third Moon!¡± The two men called out simultaneously as they watched their companion die right in front of their very eyes. Their eyes became bloodshot and their energy spiked up instantly. They put their cultivation base level on full display at this moment and scanned the crowd with their eyes and divine sense.

    ¡°Who the fuck did that?! Get out here so I can personally rip you apart with my bare hands!¡± The man that had yet to speak yet was furious. He had grown up with him and together they had experienced many moments of life and death. As soon as he saw him be killed, a cold merciless aura erupted from his body.

    ¡°Second Moon, we are going to slaughter our way into this sect. It doesn¡¯t matter if we die in the process, I want to kill as many of these people as I can. First they took Fourth Moon and now they killed Third Moon. It doesn¡¯t matter what happens to me now, I will obliterate this sect. And what I can¡¯t finish, our sect will finish the job once I¡¯m gone.¡± The man from before said in such a cold voice that the sky seemed to tremble.

    ¡°First Moon. We will slaughter everyone in here. We are the Four Moons of the Jiandan Clan and they dared to provoke us. They will die.¡± Second Moon ground his teeth at the end and unleashed an attack with lightning speed. A beam of silver light shot out of his hand and into the crowd before him.

    Before it could touch the first person, however, a beam of red light clashed with it in midair. In the same instant, a barrier was sprung up and covered over all of the disciples in the area to shield them from the blast.

    Bang!

    The two attacks cancelled each other out and created a blast that made dust billow out everywhere. The dust covered the field and made seeing very hard to do with the naked eye. But divine sense was easily able to make its way through. First and Second Moon were able to locate several figures in the distance that were rushing to make their way over. However, only one figure would actually be able to match them.

    ¡°Humph. I¡¯ll take them on, you handle the disciples around us.¡± First Moon spoke and then disappeared. When he reappeared he waved his hand causing the dust to be wiped away. The sky in the area quickly became dark as it looked like midnight had suddenly arrived. Two moons rose in the sky, one was a crescent moon and the other was actually a new moon. The two moons hung in the sky shining silver light on everything in the area.

    Each of the members of the Four Moons had a Night Moon Domain which would turn the sky dark and erect their own moon. This domain, like any other, would increase their own strength while suppressing others.

    First Moon glowed with a silver light that acted as a barrier as it took on multiple red beams directly. He gave a snort and then punched out with a bright silver fist. His fist collided with the fist of another. This fist happened to belong to none other than Fourth Elder!

    Fourth Elder looked at First Moon in the eye. His face looked drunken but his aura radiated a pressure that was equal to a 4th Grade Second Ranked cultivator. ¡°You¡¯re going to die.¡± Fourth Elder said calmly.

    First Moon looked at him coldly and said. ¡°Trifling 4th Grade.¡± He then pushed his fist out and that caused Fourth Elder to be pushed back by ten steps. ¡°Before I die, everyone here will accompany me!¡± The new moon in the sky twinkled in the dark and emitted a strong silver light. ¡°You don¡¯t qualify to contest against me.¡± Pressure exploded out that threw everybody back. Surprisingly, he was at the peak 5th Grade of the Second Rank.

 Chapter 133: The Four Moons (2)

    First Moon waved his hand where a new moon appeared in his palm. The new moon twinkled and made the dark sky even darker. Silver light sprang up around his body as he looked to be like a firefly in the otherwise dark place. ¡°Die!¡± He yelled out as the new moon in his hands enlarged and was thrown out toward the crowd of people in front of him.

    Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth Elder decided to take on the blast while Seventh Elder went to protect the people from the remaining energy. Surprisingly, it took all four of them just to take on First Moon. Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth Elder coughed up a mouthful of blood. Blood was dripping from their mouths and their faces were pale.

    ¡°We need to hold him back. The other Elder¡¯s should still be preparing some things and they can¡¯t come immediately. It¡¯s up to us to fight back for now.¡± Fourth Elder gritted his teeth and said. The others all assented.

    First Moon¡¯s eyes were bloodshot as he advanced in their direction. A silver light sprang around his body and lit up the dark area. He gave a cold snort as he waved his hand in their direction. Four dark moons appeared around his body as they quickly grew in size. Each moon then shot forward to meet with each of the Elders.

    Swish. The moons quickly arrived at the Elders; the dark moon covered over their bodies as if it were consuming them. Their skin started to darken as though they were corroding from the inside out. All four of the Elders coughed up blood that was mixed with blackness. Seventh and Sixth Elder had it worse since they had the lowest cultivation of the group, only being at the 1st Grade of the Earthly Rank.

    Their skin was rapidly turning black at a fast pace and their darkened blood was oozing from their eyes, ears, nose, and mouths. The two dropped to their knees and gasped for air as they tried to recover. ¡°Seventh Elder! Sixth Elder!¡± The surrounding disciples called out as they saw the Elders drop down. The two Elders gritted their teeth and quickly stood back up, staggering as they did.

    ¡°Hehehe. You won¡¯t be standing for long.¡± First Moon raised his hands into the air as a giant black moon appeared above his head. This black moon gave off a sense of overwhelming power. Just simply looking at it would cause someone to feel as if their body was corroding away. The pressure given off by this moon made the eyes of the Elders constrict from shock; the only exception was Fourth Elder.

    Fourth Elder looked deeply at this black moon and his eyes glazed with focus and determination. He took a drink from his alcohol flagon and then closed his eyes. His body started to glow with a purple wavy light that almost resembled mist but not quite. He held the hand that wasn¡¯t holding the flagon in the air as the purple light gathered into his palm.

    That purple wavy light started to gather faster and faster and an image started to form within the middle of his raised palm. In the blink of an eye the image of a grapevine appeared. There were hundreds of grapes on the grapevine that were purple in color. Fourth Elder¡¯s eyes were closed but then they suddenly snapped opened to reveal a clear and keen look; this was rare since he was almost always drunk.

    The grapes on the grapevine quickly turned to a charcoal color with a purple dot in the center and grew to a staggering size. Each grape grew to become the size of a head before they stopped growing. They gave off an ominous feeling of darkness that edged toward the soul as if to consume it. This feeling of power and pressure was no less than that of the black moon that was above First Moon¡¯s head.

    ¡°Die!¡± First Moon screamed out as he threw his hands forward. The black moon in his hands flew toward the Elders directions in an attempt to fully corrode their bodies and destroy them. The power of the moon¡¯s cultivated by the Four Moons of the Jiandan Clan were made to corrode. Fourth Moon¡¯s power of corrosion targeted the mind whereas First Moon¡¯s targeted the whole body. There was a clear difference in power between the two and that obviously showed through the use of these moves.Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators!

    Fourth Elder clenched his palm into a fist, this made the grapevine burst out, sending all of the grapes shooting outward toward the black moon. They carried the power of darkness and illusions as they hurtled forward in a sporadic manner. The darkness in the grapes made it so that the power it emitted would directly attack the inside of the body, heading toward the mind, body, and soul. The illusions brought a sense of warmth and euphoria. It was a weird mixture that, when put together, would cause shocking effects.

    The charcoal and purple grapes exploded outwards in a wide area attack but soon gathered together to form a giant grape. The grape was just as large as the black moon and also brought an equally shocking pressure and power. The two attacks caused the ground to crack and the air to shake and vibrate as they came closer to each other.

    Fifth, Sixth, and Seventh Elder decided to divert their energy to protecting the disciples. It wasn¡¯t like they didn¡¯t want to aid Fourth Elder in attacking First Moon, it was just that Fourth Elder was the only one capable of launching an attack at the time. Once the three were finally able to move their bodies, there just wasn¡¯t enough time to actually conjure up a useful attack, so they just focused on defending for now.

    Boom! The collision brought along wave after wave of power and destruction. Buildings shook and the ground below broke apart. Trees and other vegetation was ripped up as the shockwave blasted outward. The nearby disciples were thrown back by the shockwave, even with the Elder¡¯s protecting them they still sustained injuries. This was to be expected since this level of attack was just something they couldn¡¯t even comprehend.

    The four Elders were too busy fighting off First Moon, he was just too powerful for them to split up and attack both First and Second Moon. This allowed for Second Moon to run amok in the sect and destroy some buildings. He was trying to kill disciples but every time he would try they would somehow disappear from his view.

    ¡°AAARGH! It doesn¡¯t matter how far you all run. I¡¯ll rip your life away with these two hands of mine.¡± Silver light sprang up on his body and shined on the sect. A half moon rested in his palms as the power of erosion spilled out. The nearby buildings started to erode, gradually wearing down until they no longer had the strength to remain standing.

    ¡°Where is your sect leader at? Bring him out here so that I can tear him apart. I want to give his life up for my own brother!¡± The Four Moons of the Jiandan Clan were really close with each other. They had grown up with each other, they considered each other brothers, and they had experienced many life and death situations together. It was only right that after one had disappeared here and another one of their brothers was killed that they would be angry beyond reason.

    ¡°Humph. Simply absurd. Even if all four of you teamed up, you wouldn¡¯t be close to my match.¡± Sect Leader Fu gave a cold snort. ¡°How about you take on one of my disciples.¡± She gave another cold snort before a red mist sprang up around Second Moon. He felt his power being suppressed to a horrible degree. After that he was transported to a different place.

    ¡®Their Sect Leader is a woman? What about that information on that man? I can¡¯t communicate with the sect any longer either. My power seems to have weakened to the 1st Grade of the Earthly Rank. What all is happening?¡¯ Second Moon was extremely confused as of now. ¡°Tell me where I am! Show yourself and fight me right now so I can utterly destroy you!¡± He yelled out.

    ¡°If you can kill this disciple of mine then I¡¯ll return your companion to you.¡± Sect Leader Fu said calmly in Second Moon¡¯s mind.

    ¡°I don¡¯t give a fuck about your disciple! They¡¯re all going to die anyways. I want to destroy you personally!¡± Second Moon yelled with bloodthirsty intent. But he didn¡¯t get a response. He yelled out frustratingly and his aura exploded out.

    ¡°There ain¡¯t no need to be so frantic. My Sect Leader already told me ¡®bout you and what she wants me to do with you. If yer can manage to kill me then you get yer friend back, right? Then I reckon yer only choice is to fight me.¡± A calm tone entered the ears of Second Moon.

    His bloodshot eyes scanned the area. It was a field that was covered in white grass. The sky was dark and a moon could be seen high in the sky. In the distance he could see a lone figure that was seated cross legged. Around him was red grass that twinkled much brighter than the white grass.

    The figure wore a white robe and had short black hair. Across his lap could be seen a single greatsword. The blade was red and the hilt of the sword was a calm white. The youth¡¯s face was calm and his eyes were closed. He wasn¡¯t putting the man that had just arrived in his mind at all.

    ¡°You send a kid that¡¯s only at the 10th Grade of the Mortal Rank to fight against me? Humph. Even if I am suppressed to the 1st Grade it means nothing to me before this kid. You just sent him to his own death. This sect is simply stupid, If all of our brothers were together we could destroy it by ourselves. Just wait until I kill this kid and make my way over to you.¡± Second Moon¡¯s eyes and face filled with a cold killing intent.

 Chapter 134: I Reckonâ€™ Issa Killinâ€™

    Second Moon was filled to the brim with killing intent. His cold and savage eyes were locked on tight to the person in front of him. Even though the person was sitting down cross legged calmly, he still figured that this person couldn¡¯t possibly withstand him. Even though he was suppressed down to the 1st Grade of the Earthly Rank, this person in front of him was only at the 10th Grade of the Mortal Rank. The distance was only one Grade but there was also a difference between one Rank as well. It might seem short but in reality this was huge!

    Moving from the Mortal Rank to the Earthly Rank signified a huge change to one¡¯s life. No longer did one have to spend all of their time on the ground, when one successfully broke through to the Earthly Rank they could actually fly! This alone surpassed a mortal¡¯s comprehension. The body would transform to a completely new existence that would put it in a whole different league from mortals.

    To put it simply, the weakest 1st Grade Earthly Rank cultivator was still at least 50 times stronger than a regular 10th Grade Mortal Rank cultivator. This was an increase in strength by 50 whole times! There was simply no way that a Mortal Ranked cultivator could stand up to an Earthly Ranked cultivator. That was why, even though the difference was only one Rank, Second Moon held absolute confidence in himself. Killing this person in front of him would only take a wave of his hand.

    Second Moon¡¯s eyes were bloodshot and a cold pressure radiated off of him. He gave a cold snort and immediately disappeared. As soon as he appeared again he was already in front of the white robed figure. Silver light sprang up all around his body as a giant crescent moon appeared above his hand. With a wave, it was sent toward the seated figure in an awe-inspiring manner. It brought a chilling cold sensation that corroded the heart.

    It all happened so fast that it was simply unbelievable. The person seated on the ground didn¡¯t even have time to move yet despite an attack being launched at him. Second Moon didn¡¯t think much of it since this was the speed being at the Earthly Rank granted. It was speed that mortals couldn¡¯t even see or comprehend, let alone react to.

    The crescent moon swept toward the seated figure at a crazy speed, easily surpassing the speed that was used by Second Moon to arrive right in front of the seated figure. In less than a blink of an eye it was already upon the figures body.

    Bang!

    The crescent moon exploded upon impact as dust and debris rose into the air. Second Moon¡¯s cold eyes never left the figure, which was why they were constricted right now. Ahead of him, he could see the white robed figure standing about a foot back from where he was just seated, completely ungrazed. Not even a speck of dust was on his white robes.

    ¡°Yer ain¡¯t even ask fo¡¯ my name. Well I¡¯ll let yer know since yer ain¡¯t gonna be living fo¡¯ long anyhow. They call me Huihe Ji. That¡¯s my given name, my daoist name is¡­ Swordlife.¡± Huihe Ji lifted up the red greatsword in his hands and pointed it straight at Second Moon.

    Second Moon felt his heart stop beating for a moment as he gazed upon the sword in the youth¡¯s hands. That sword gave him a very bad feeling. Not only did the sword give him a bad feeling, but when he looked at the youth¡¯s eyes he felt a shocking sword intent.

    ¡®Just who is this person?¡¯ This was all that he could think of. He had originally not even considered this youth alive, yet when he saw this youth slice his crescent moon in half in an instant all of his haughtiness disappeared. His mind settled down and he no longer was acting rashly like before.This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

    ¡®This sect actually raised a monster of a kid. No wonder it is considered mysterious and that the other sects are actually taking it seriously. A 10th Grade Mortal Ranked kid can actually fight against the Earthly Rank.¡¯ Second Moon took in a deep breath as shocking killing intent roiled out of him. He had to eliminate this person in front of him. If this person was allowed to grow, who knows what would happen to his sect during the war?

    ¡°I¡¯m going to kill you kid.¡± Second Moon¡¯s eyes flashed with silver light as his eyes pupils transformed to resemble crescent moons. The sky above turned dark as a crescent moon appeared up above. This was the Divine Night Shift Domain that every one of the Four Moons knew how to do. It strengthened them while it suppressed their opponent.

    A sickle appeared in each of his hands: the blade resembling a crescent moon shape. Second Moon sliced at the air sending waves of silver light racing toward Huihe Ji. That silver light wanted to corrode the heart, making it so that the opponent wouldn¡¯t want to fight back at all.

    ¡°Ah! This is sort of like how I use my abandonment powers. This is so much more simpler than the way I use it and it makes so much more sense. Amazing.¡± Sect Leader Fu was watching the whole battle take place from her throne. She didn¡¯t expect to see anything spectacular, but she also didn¡¯t expect to gain any insights either. This was a true blessing for her.

    Huihe Ji looked calmly at the approaching silver light. His heart felt as if it couldn¡¯t take on those arcs of light head on. It didn¡¯t want to take on those lights at all. He felt his body slowly giving up, not wanting to fight any longer. He picked up his greatsword and held it in the air above his head. With a large swing he caused a huge red beam of light to shoot out toward those arcs of silver light.

    The huge red beam of sword-light clashed with the silver beams head on. It consumed the first one, then the second and third. It continued on in a straight path unimpeded by the silver arcs of light. It was a direct clash of power between a Mortal Ranked cultivator and an Earthly Rank cultivator, and Second Moon was actually losing out!

    ¡®The power of his sword intent is simply amazing. Even in a straight clash I¡¯m losing out. Just what insights has he gained. It is obviously on the level of an Earthly Ranked cultivator.¡¯ Second Moon gritted his teeth a crescent moon appeared above his head. It then started to rotate at a fast pace. The rotation caused the power of corrosion to spill outwards and into the surrounding area.

    ¡®I corrode the hearts of things. They will bend to my will once I impart my thoughts upon it. I will control the area until I eventually corrode his heart and then I will have won.¡¯ Second Moon made his plan mentally and started to enact it.

    The power of corrosion filled the area and forced its way into the surrounding objects. Rocks, grass, air, etc. all felt their hearts being corroded. Just like everything had its own soul, everything had its own ¡®heart¡¯. This ¡®heart¡¯ was shaped by environment and other factors. Maybe a plant lived its life in shade and wanted a taste of sunlight. Its heart would be weak and easily susceptible to being controlled. Second Moon took advantage of the surrounding hearts and controlled them to his will. They all soon emitted the corrosion energy he let off, multiplying its effects on Huihe Ji.

    Huihe Ji felt his own heart seize. His eyes constricted slightly but then he took in a deep breath and calmed back down. ¡°So yer can control the hearts of other things too? Well yer ain¡¯t the only one.¡± Suddenly a shocking pressure started to spread out from Huihe Ji¡¯s body.

    Right now his body was thin and slender, looking every bit different from his usual pudgy self. But now, a vortex sprang up around him, sucking in the surrounding energy. This energy bolstered his body and made him grow, his muscles grew, his hair became longer, and he became taller as well. He soon looked well built, like a bodybuilder. The greatsword in his hands soon looked like a regular straight sword. He gripped it in one hand and held it across his shoulder.

    This was an upgraded version of the Gluttonous Sword Spirit technique he cultivated before. That technique required for him to eat a lot to absorb the spiritual energy in food to get stronger. But now he could directly absorb the energy of the surrounding area for a short period of time to gain tremendous strength.

    ¡°Time fo¡¯ yer to die.¡± He said calmly. He stepped forward ever so slowly and appeared right in front of Second Moon. ¡°There¡¯s a reason my daoist title is Swordlife. I take the life in the surrounding area and use it to bolster myself and my here sword. With it I can easily kill a 1st Grade Earthly Rank cultivator.¡±

    Slice! The greatsword in Huihe Ji¡¯s hand swept across the throat of Second Moon, slicing off his head. It happened so fast that the eyes of Second Moon were still wide from shock. He didn¡¯t even know how he died. His head rolled down off his shoulders. The blood from his body somehow, squirted out and floated in the air to form a ball of blood. That blood was then consumed by the greatsword forming an even deeper red.

    ¡°That¡¯s a good lil Bloodblade Sword.¡± Huihe Ji took a step and reappeared in the middle of the red grass that he was sitting at previously. He let out a deep breath as his body returned to his normal slender self. He sat down cross legged and continued to meditate and await further orders.

 Chapter 135: Mental Breakdown

    Red Cloud Sect Entrance

    First Moon and Fourth Elder looked at each other deeply from across the ravaged and destroyed field. First Moon¡¯s eyes were bloodshot and his body radiated a strong killing intent that caused the surrounding air to freeze. Fourth Elder¡¯s body was drenched in both sweat and blood. His clothes were in tatters and his hair was in utter disarray.

    The two attacks that they had launched had been about the same strength, with First Moon¡¯s being slightly more powerful. The only reason why Fourth Elder was the one covered in blood and not First Moon was because his body was weak. His cultivation level and training made it so that he could fight others on a higher level than him, but he didn¡¯t focus on body cultivation at all. He was mostly a long distance fighter and therefore, being put in a situation where he had to fight up close, he was at a disadvantage.

    His opponent was on of the Four Moons of the Jiandan Clan. Although they weren¡¯t the strongest force within the clan, they still had tremendous power amongst their group. They weren¡¯t as monstrous as the disciples and Elders of the Red Cloud Sect, but they were still able to fight those with a higher cultivation level than themselves. First Moon was at the peak 5th Grade of the Earthly Rank and he alone could handle two others on his same level. He could even contend with normal 6th Grade Earthly Rank cultivators.

    But¡­ none of those things were what made the Four Moons dreadful. It wasn¡¯t because they hailed from a big clan, it wasn¡¯t because they had tremendous talent, it wasn¡¯t because they could fight those on a higher level¡­ it was because they cultivated the element of corrosion. Corrosion was apart of the wicked path of the Elemental Tree and it was feared throughout the Divine Crystal Continent.

    All elements in the universe could be found on the Elemental Tree: whether it be fire, water, lightning, souls, chaos, etc. they were all on the Elemental Tree. The tree however, was a complicated one, but on the general basis of everything, it could be divided into two simple parts. The Fiend Path and the Saint Path. The Fiend Path consisted of wicked and vile elements such as corrosion, darkness, yin, and demonic. The Saint Path had much softer and common elements like water, healing, light, and stars.

    The Fiend Path was seen as a vicious path that only those with twisted minds would dare to tread. That was because those who cultivated the elements on the Fiend Path would inevitably be brought under the protections of Devils and be given curse power. While those who tread on the Saint Path would be under the protection of Gods and be given blessed power. This was only known through stories, however, as most of the people of this planet weren¡¯t at a strong enough level to truly understand the workings of the Elemental Tree. They got most of their knowledge from stories and pieces of written information. Although those stories and the information was truly ancient, it was enough for the masses to decide that the Fiend Path should not be treaded.

    The Four Moons of the Jiandan Clan actually walked this path, however. No one knew why one of the strongest clans in the Divine Crystal Continent would allow these people to cultivate fiend elements but with the combination of the corrosion element, their backing, and their strength, it was suffice to say that the Four Moons were a formidable force that many people dreaded.

    Fourth Elder coughed up a mouthful of blood. The thick crimson-black blood landed on the ground in front of him as he staggered heavily and fell to one knee. His gaze still never left First Moon¡¯s. He glanced down quickly only to notice that the blood on his body was slowly turning into a deep black. He coughed up another mouthful of crimson-black blood.

    If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

    ¡°Fourth Elder!¡± The disciples and Elder¡¯s called out simultaneously. There was no time to save him as in the very next instant a figure dressed in silver armor appeared right in front of his kneeling body. The figure held his hand in the air and a brutal and menacing pressure exploded out.

    ¡°Die!¡± First Moon didn¡¯t waste many words as he thrust his hand forward at Fourth Elder¡¯s chest. This hand carried the full might of his cultivation base level as well as the corrosion element. This strike alone was enough to seriously wound if not kill a full strength Fourth Elder, let alone a weakened one. First Moon¡¯s eyes were bloodshot and his hand clenched into a fist. He clenched his fist together so hard that the knuckles within could be heard cracking.

    Fourth Elder looked as the fist approached his chest. He could do little more than just stare at it as it came closer. Black blood dripped from his lips and his body was feeling a weird numbing sensation. He couldn¡¯t feel his fingers or his toes, then it was his arms and legs, and it was building up in his chest. His skin was turning black as the inside of his body was slowly being destroyed by the corrosive element that First Moon was using. He couldn¡¯t even smile bitterly as soon his face became numb.

    His whole body was numb and he couldn¡¯t even move an eye muscle. He felt cold and detached, as if he was an outsider looking in at the world through this foreign body. All he could do was wait for death in this lifeless unmoving body of his. He didn¡¯t even fear the idea that he would die in this instance, it wasn¡¯t like he was going to feel it or anything. It would be instantaneous for him. Past images and visions of his life flitted through his head as the fist seemed to slowly approach.

    ¡®This has been a good life. I joined such a magnificent sect, I cultivated all the way to the mid Earthly Rank stages. I could be considered an expert in most places. Heck, I could¡¯ve even started my own damn sect if I wanted.¡¯ He gave a mental sigh. ¡®Well, I won¡¯t have the chance to do that anymore. At least I get to reunite with my beloved and drink all the alcohol I want.¡¯ Fourth Elder felt much warmer inside after experiencing his life in a flash.

    The fist was right in front of his chest, only three inches away from obliterating his body completely. All of a sudden he heard a weird noise from in front of him. It sounded like a ghostly wail, as if someone had just heard the most terrible horrific news. First Moon screamed out in a bloodcurdling voice as the fist that he had thrown out swept to the side, narrowly missing Fourth Elder¡¯s body.

    First Moon clamped his hands on to his head and screamed out in agony. ¡°Nooo! Stop fucking with me! He ain¡¯t dead! My brother isn¡¯t fucking dead! I¡¯ll tear you to fucking pieces! Get the hell out here now! Ahhh!¡± His eyes were dyed completely red and tears of blood could be seen streaming down his face. He was having an utter mental breakdown moments from eradicating Fourth Elder.

    A soft laugh could be heard in the area as a small dainty figure in white robes appeared. She seemed to resemble a goddess out of the ancient manuscripts, someone completely out of legend. Her beauty would cause kingdoms to wage war against each other just to be able to see her figure. Her looks and body were absolutely stunning to behold.

    ¡®He dared to attack my sect with his measly power? Heh. Death would just be too easy for him. Let him see how his partner died by my disciples hands. I¡¯ll let him witness his head being chopped off and rolling on the ground countless times until he loses his bearings and mental faculties.¡¯ Sect Leader Fu stood behind Fourth Elder looking calmly as First Moon screamed in agony.

    The vision was only harming him mentally, but Sect Leader Fu had used some of her power to make it so that each time sorrow or grief struck him, he would suffer a huge painful backlash that would attack his soul. With each time the vision was replayed, his grief would rise and his soul would be attacked. This was an ending cycle that gave the scene that was now playing before everyone.

    ¡°Hahaha.¡± Sect Leader Fu laughed a beautiful laugh that made all of the tension the disciples and Elder¡¯s had swiftly go away. ¡°This princess cannot simply let you off that easy. Hehe. We¡¯ll save your true punishment for when we have some more spectators.¡± Sect Leader Fu subconsciously licked her lips. With a wave of her hand First Moon disappeared from the spot he was standing in. Sect Leader Fu turned around to face the crowd of disciples and Elders.

    ¡°This matter is now over. Because of this little event I¡¯ve decided to cancel the Body Spirit Exam. Come tomorrow, we¡¯ll begin the Red Cloud Sparring Day event. This event will decide the ranks, position, authority, treasures, and other things for yourself once the war comes. Do your best.¡± With that she paid no further attention to the crowd as she disappeared. Fourth Elder who was behind her had also disappeared as well.

    The crowd was just left standing there with mixed emotions. This had been a huge catastrophe that had nearly cost them their lives. Fourth Elder was heavily wounded, part of the sect was destroyed, and most of them were injured themselves. Yet, once the Sect Leader had come she had ended it all in an instant. Why hadn¡¯t she done so before?! Yet, nobody voiced this as her power, clearly surpassed their wildest imaginations.

 Chapter 136: Before Sparring Day

    The sky was a warm orange color due to the setting sun in the distance. The previous crowd that was at the entrance of the sect had long since dispersed. They didn¡¯t want to waste any valuable training time that would be useful for the Red Cloud Sparring Day event tomorrow. Mostly all of the disciples had went to the field to get a bit of training in. The Elder¡¯s had gone in their own directions to do whatever they had to do to prepare.

    Peizhi Xiuying had gone to her own dorm room to meditate. She had already reached the peak of what she was capable of and no further training would increase her strength. Now she just needed to get some true experience out in the world.

    Her eyes were closed and her breathing was at a calm even tone. But her mind was anything but relaxed. ¡®I wonder how Akata is doing? He¡¯s been in the tower for a long while. He said he wanted to get his own training in but he¡¯s been by himself for all this time.¡¯ When she thought back to the event with the azure vines and the destruction it was able to unleash he couldn¡¯t help but shudder.

    ¡®Just what kind of plant is that? Even in my clan¡¯s records there wouldn¡¯t be anything that powerful. I can¡¯t even comprehend how terrifying that thing is. And Akata¡­ he¡¯s able to use that?¡¯ Cold sweat started to form and drip down Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s body as she recalled those past events. It was a truly terrifying scene. Seeing a vast field of life being instantly turned into nothingness. Nobody should have that kind of power.

    Shaking her head she cleared her mind of all thoughts. Inhaling deeply and then exhaling slowly, her mind was refocused upon meditating. ¡®No need to worry about it. I just have to do my best in the Red Cloud Sparring Day.¡¯

    ***

    In a desolate world that was bare to the eyes, there was a youth in a shoulder cloak that was seated cross legged. In the outside world, a couple of days had passed, but in this deserted place it had been weeks. This was the Tower of Clouds effects on the third floor. One was able to control the perception of time in this place. That way one would be able to get in more training with little time passing in the outside world.

    Akata had his eyes closed and he seemed extremely calm. His arms were in his lap and on his golden plant arm could be seen an azure vine with some golden leaves on it. Akata slowly opened his eyes and with but a thought, a figure appeared before him. This figure was a two-headed ape looking creature that radiated a pressure that was equal to Akata¡¯s.

    Akata stood up and looked calmly at the figure ahead of him. The azure kudzu vine unravelled itself from his golden plant arm and spread out to surround Akata¡¯s body. It seemed to slither around Akata like a snake and it emitted a shocking pressure.

    The ape-like beast let out a roar and charged toward Akata. Two more arms popped out of its sides and its fur turned into a heavy brown from its former gray. With each step it took the ground beneath it would smash apart throwing rocks in the air. These rocks would float in the air for a bit of time before shooting toward Akata¡¯s body with a mighty force and speed.

    Akata face was still calm as he watched the rocks come closer. He waved his hand and the azure vine reacted by suddenly springing up in front of Akata to block the incoming rocks.

    Bang! Bang! Bang! With each rock that landed on the vine a heavy thud could be heard. Clearly, they possessed immense strength. But as soon as they landed on the vine, they crumbled away into nothingness. Akata was completely protected by the vine, he didn¡¯t even have to take a step back.

    The vine started to move toward the two-headed ape but then it immediately shuddered and stopped in place. Akata¡¯s gaze could be seen looking at the vine coldy. After a brief moment he looked away and stared at the ape coldly. He lifted up a hand where his scythe appeared. He took in a deep breath and swung his scythe toward the ape.This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.

    Swish! A black beam of light shot out of the scythe and hurdled toward the two-headed ape. That beam was unimpeded and shot through the air as if there was an open path for it. The beam accurately landed on the throat of the ape and sliced off its head. Akata put away the scythe and sat back down.

    The ape didn¡¯t even have time to get within 10 meters of Akata before it had been cut down. Before its head hit the ground however, it dispersed in a white light along with the rest of its body. This was how all creatures created by the mental field would act once killed.

    Akata let out a sigh. ¡®While I have a bit more control over it, it still acts on its own after a while.¡¯ Akata shook his head silently. During the past weeks he was in here he had tried to force the vine to submit to him. But, it was just too strong. It had immense strength that Akata wasn¡¯t able to combat directly at all. Even if it was a light brush of an attack that he suffered he would end up with rather medium injuries. The only thing that allowed him to actually fight with the vine was that it had no intelligence whatsoever.

    Akata was able to outsmart it on numerous occasions and therefore beat it eventually after a long period of time. But even still, it knew that it was stronger than Akata and wouldn¡¯t easily submit to him. Therefore, Akata had to just threaten it with annihilation to quell it. Even though the vine was immensely stronger than him, he was able to threaten it with annihilation. This was because he had the power to thoroughly destroy it. It was his arm after all. Cultivators were easily capable of destroying their own body if they wanted to, and with how familiar Akata was with his own body, it would be simplicity in itself if he wanted to destroy this arm of his.

    ¡®Still¡­ to think that it is actually sentient. I would have never thought that a plant can just become sentient like this. It¡¯s a good thing that it won¡¯t actually try and kill me otherwise I would have been dead.¡¯ During the early fights that Akata had with the vine, it was able to easily overpower Akata. Akata had been unprepared and therefore was vulnerable to the vine. But he found that it never struck the finishing blow to him. Even though this was just a mental world, it still never tried to actually kill him.

    ¡®Seems as if it¡¯ll take more than just threatening to make it submit fully to me. I¡¯ll have to get much stronger if I want to completely control this vine. Still¡­ it makes for one of the best shields I have ever seen.¡¯ With its ability to thoroughly destroy anything it comes into contact with, its ability as a shield was superb. ¡®I¡¯ll take some time to rest. Later, I¡¯ll find ways to increase my cultivation levels.¡¯

    Akata had multiple cultivation bases. He had to worry about cultivating in the Realm of Mortals, Demons, Plants, Realm of the Body, Realm of Mental Energy, Nature Energy, Divine Sense, Realm of the Scythe, and the Realm of the Soul and Khaos Elements. Although with all of this he was extremely strong for a cultivator at his age and level, it would take him a long time to advance just one stage. Let alone breaking through Ranks.

    Each cultivation realm had ranks associated with them. Just like the Cultivation Realms had the Mortal Rank and Earthly Rank, the Energy Realms, such as mental energy, nature energy, and divine sense, had Ranks as well. Right now, Akata was in the First Rank of everything he cultivated the furthest along with any realm he was in was the Realm of Mortals with him being at the 8th Grade of the Mortal Rank. It could be seen how far he had to go in order to advance.

    With but a thought, Akata disappeared from the desolate area that he was in. He opened his eyes to find himself back on the third floor of the Tower of Clouds. He was still seated on the white and golden bed and was quite comfortable. He looked around to see that some new faces had managed to make their way up to the third floor. Akata didn¡¯t disturb them as he silently left the third floor and the Tower of Clouds.

    ¡®In the Realm of Mortals I¡¯m at the 8th Grade of the First Rank. In the Realm of Plants I¡¯m at the 7th Grade. The Realm of Demons I¡¯m at the 1st Grade. I should hurry up and breakthrough to the Second Rank so that I can better control the vine. My guess is that it is in the Second Rank of the Realm of Plants. Once I make it to the Second Rank I should be able to force it to submit to me.

    In the Realm of Elements my skill is the best out of all the disciples in the whole sect. If I had to guess, in the soul element it should be around the 5th Grade whereas the khaos element is maybe the 3rd Grade.¡¯ Akata still didn¡¯t know much about elements and especially didn¡¯t know how to rank his skill in it.

    ¡®In the Realm of Energy, my mental energy is the strongest. I feel that it is much more stronger than my nature energy.¡¯ Although Akata used his nature energy a lot, his mental energy outclassed it by far. If Akata had any mental energy skills then it would be effortless on his part to even take on people at the Great Circle of the First Rank. He would even be able to contend with people at the Half-Step First Rank.

    Akata continued to walk aimlessly while thinking of his strengths and weaknesses. All of a sudden a voice popped into his head.

    ¡°Akata. Meet me at Red Cloud Hall right now. There¡¯s something that I want you to do.¡± Third Elder¡¯s voice popped into his head, startling him slightly. Akata calmed his heart and then walked in the direction of Red Cloud Hall. ¡®What could Third Elder want with me?¡¯ He wondered.

 Chapter 137: Before Sparring Day (2)

    Red Cloud Hall

    Akata walked into Red Cloud Hall and found that there were multiple people inside of the building. When he saw them, they all turned to look at him back.

    ¡®Peizhi Xiuying, Pulong Chu, and Xiao Pao are here. There are others here as well. Wait, isn¡¯t that Cho Re and Sno Re? The twins that have grown super strong lately? I saw their names on multiple top ten lists and people have been speaking of them.¡¯ Akata looked closely at the two people.

    ¡®Now that I think about it, they were both on the second floor of the Tower of Clouds. Hold up.¡¯ Akata¡¯s eyes focuses more clearly on the two. ¡®They¡¯re both at the 7th Grade? For family to be so close to each other in strength, they must be truly close.¡¯

    It was indeed rare for family or for people with close relationships to be close in strength. The twins however, were actually at the same level of strength. There power output would be the same and with them being so close their teamwork would work extravagantly.

    Akata quickly seated himself near the various people and waited for someone to show. Either more disciples or an Elder. After a few moments the door behind him opened up and a person dressed in gray robes walked in. When he saw all of the people he was quite startled.

    ¡®Fang Zuwa? He¡¯s here too? Whoa! He¡¯s already at the 7th Grade as well! He was just at the 5th Grade a little while ago. How could he have advanced so fast?¡¯ Akata was truly shocked and not just him, but everyone who had seen Fang Zuwa a short while ago were flabbergasted. His strength increased by two levels in a short amount of time after all.

    Fang Zuwa noticed the quiet atmosphere and decided to seat near the crowd silently, just as Akata had decided to do. No more disciples came in after Fang Zuwa and the crowd just waited there. After a few minutes of waiting, Third Elder walked in.

    He walked gracefully as if he were an exalted being in the universe. Every stride he took made it seem as if he could tread the world in a single step. His head was held high as if he could overlook the heavens themselves. The natural pressure emanating off of him felt to the disciples that he was a transcendent being from another world.

    He eventually stopped in front of the disciples and looked them over calmly, a slight smile on his face. He said in a cheery tone, ¡°Disciples of our here Red Cloud Sect. The thirteen of you have shown that you have what it takes put in hard work. As such you all shall undergo a special test during the Red Cloud Sparring Day event.¡± Third Elder looked at the puzzled faces of the disciples.

    ¡°Since you have shown that you have the strength, we shall now see if you can lead. For you see, this years Red Cloud Sparring Day event is a bit different. Instead of competing individually like we have the previous years, we will compete in groups. And¡­ you all will be a leader of your own group. There will be exceptions however, such as Cho and Sno Re. You two will coordinate together under the same group. In other words, you¡¯ll work together as one leader.¡± Third Elder could see the faces of the disciples become even more confused than ever.

    ¡°There is a good reason for this as they have been known to work together on everything. It could be said that they share the same mind in different bodies. So, me and the other Elders decided to let those two be together. There group will have a bit more people than the rest but that¡¯s about all.

    Also since those two will be considered one leader, that leaves one more spot to fill the thirteenth. And that spot will go to none other than the Sect Leader¡¯s disciple.¡± Third Elder turned his head to look toward the side.

    Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

    There was a door that was off to the side. The door slowly opened and out walked a figure in a clean and pristine white robe. He had short black hair that moved along with his own movements as if they were an extra limb to him. On his back could be seen a red greatsword that was inside of a white scabbard. His face was calm and when he walked in he saw all of the faces looking at him. His face immediately flushed red with embarrassment.

    ¡°Uh¡­ Um¡­ H¡­ Hi y¡¯all.¡± He was barely able to mutter as he hurried to the side of the crowd. He tucked his head down and didn¡¯t dare to look anyone in the eye.

    The whole crowd of disciples were awestruck. Their eyes nearly popped out of their sockets when they saw who Third Elder was talking about. The sole disciple of the Sect Leader? They didn¡¯t dare believe that it was actually one of the people they knew. Let alone Huihe Ji! Sure he was strong, but he was a complete country bumpkin. There was nothing wrong with it, it was just that it didn¡¯t fit his image at all. It was completely unexpected.

    Before any of them could start a conversation of their own about the Sect Leader¡¯s sole disciple, Third Elder cut back in. ¡°No asking why he is her disciple or anything of the like. Right. On to more important matters. The Red Cloud Sparring Day exam will be held in groups like I said before. These groups have already been picked for you so you won¡¯t have any say as to who is on your team. Your team will be scored differently from you so don¡¯t worry about having your whole team pass. Though, your decisions as a leader will have an impact on how greatly they can score.

    Speaking of scoring, in order to gain points you must complete objectives. The harder the objective the more points given. It¡¯s really simple. The whole point of this exam is to see how well you can lead a group of your own in a battle. So, needless to say, the objectives will simulate the orders and tasks given out in war.¡± Third Elder looked to see a disciple raising their hand. ¡°What Liger Tea?¡± His face became displeased. He really didn¡¯t like answering questions.

    ¡°If this is supposed to simulate war and battle then who will we be fighting? If it¡¯s ourselves then what if we get injured?¡± The one named Liger Tea spoke quickly. The other disciples nodded their heads at the question. It was something they wanted to know as well.

    ¡°Humph. Of course you won¡¯t be fighting each other. What kind of simulation would that be. You already know each other so that wouldn¡¯t be useful at all. Instead you¡¯ll be fighting various beasts.¡± Third Elder¡¯s face all of a sudden grew a wicked smile. ¡°And you¡¯ll be fighting these beasts in Misty Forest.¡±

    The faces of all the disciples changed drastically. Fight in Misty Forest? It was true that they had all grown strong to an impossible degree. Even so much to the point that they even dared to venture into Misty Forest on multiple occasions. But¡­ they only dared to go as deep as the Middle Ring. Any further than that was too dangerous for them. Even someone as strong as Peizhi Xiuying was only capable of making it close to the edge of the Middle Ring. Some disciples had even died trying to go past it. So even though they had grown stronger than they could imagine, Misty Forest was still no laughing matter.

    ¡°I guess since I told you the place where you¡¯ll be at I can tell you a bit more. For one, you¡¯ll all be there at the same time. For two, the most basic objective is killing beasts or capturing them. For three, the objective that gives the most points¡­ is reaching the Center Circle!¡± Third Elder exclaimed heartedly.

    ¡°Reaching¡­ the Center Circle?¡± One disciple said as if his soul had left his body. He wasn¡¯t the only one that felt like that, but all the rest even had fear written on their faces. Huihe Ji even gasped in shock as his face went pale. As the sole disciple of the Sect Leader he had to venture out into Misty Forest on multiple occasions and was therefore very familiar with the terrain. But even he had only made it to the starting edge of the Inner Ring.

    The mood in Red Cloud Hall instantly plummeted. It became much more serious than it had been previously. Third Elder looked around to see the gloom on everyone¡¯s faces. ¡°That¡¯s all for now. Get some rest and once all of the disciples are summoned tomorrow we¡¯ll begin the exam. Do try not to tell anyone of these matters. We would hate to have one less potential captain. Study these for now and become familiar with the technique that is included. If you can become a captain then you¡¯ll get the most important parts of the technique.¡± Third Elder waved his hand and a piece of jade landed in everyone¡¯s hands. With that he disappeared.

    Akata looked at the piece of jade in his hand. It was a simple rock that didn¡¯t really stand out. As he held it in his hand all of a sudden a bunch of information popped into his head. The jade started to glow as the information was transmitted. Luckily, the transmission was calm and soothing, otherwise, with all the information that was transmitted, it would¡¯ve caused many of them to pass out.

    Leader: Akata Kaminari

    Team: Laim Oh, Fou Rest, Ran Bow, Bur Gers, Sumting Wong¡­

    Potential Rank: General of the army/ Dragon of the Cloud Corps

    Main Objective: Reach the Center Circle of Misty Forest

    Side Objectives: Kill beasts, capture beasts, gather intel, acquire resources, sabotage enemies¡­

    Thundercloud Brigade Technique¡­

    Akata quickly scanned through the contents of the jade. The Thundercloud Brigade technique really piqued his interest and he would definitely spend his time on learning the basics of it. After scanning the jade he pushed it to the back of his mind as he thought of one thing. He looked in the distance to see a lone figure that was obviously entranced within the jade¡¯s contents.

    Akata slowly made his way over to that lone figure and stopped in front of him. The figure looked up and then smiled. ¡°Huihe Ji.¡± Akata said joyfully.

 Chapter 138: Before Sparring Day (3)

    ¡°Akata.¡± Huihe Ji stood up slowly as he looked at Akata. The last time these two had met, he was heavily injured and was recovering. Their battle had been a tough one but had happened way too fast for most of the people to even notice what was happening. By the time they did notice, it was already over. Huihe Ji didn¡¯t resent Akata or anything, in fact he admired him. Akata had came from nothing and had forced his way to stand on equal grounds with the top people of the sect. How couldn¡¯t you admire someone like that.

    ¡°It¡¯s been a long while Huihe-¡± Akata started to say.

    ¡°No. Call me Swordlife. That be my daoist name an¡¯ what I would like to go by for now on.¡± Huihe Ji said calmly and with a smile on his face.

    ¡°Mn.¡± Akata nodded his head. ¡°Okay, Swordlife.¡± It was very common for cultivators to have their own daoist name. It was basically one¡¯s identity, something that represented you. Huihe Ji¡¯s daoist name represented his love for the sword and what the sword meant to him. It was his life and nothing would change that.

    Akata looked deeply at Swordlife and then a will erupted within him that hadn¡¯t manifested for a long while. It was a will that gave him a rush, his blood will pump faster, an adrenaline rush would course through his body. It urged his body on, begging every fiber of his being to go along with this will of his. He had no control over it and it would come when someone strong appeared before him. This will had manifested before in front of Jiandan Fuza but in front of Huihe Ji, it was absolutely overpowering. This was¡­ Akata¡¯s fighting will!

    He was itching to have a battle with Huihe Ji right now. It was as if a calling was being sent to his body, his mind, his soul. This time, the feeling of wanting to fight was so intense that Akata unconsciously started to rotate his crimson rune inside of him. A crimson flicker appeared within the depths of his eyes.

    Huihe Ji noticed this and could feel the change in atmosphere all of a sudden. He laughed awkwardly and said, ¡°Akata, shouldn¡¯t we be getting ready for the exam. It will decide our roles on the battlefield. Besides¡­¡± Huihe Ji¡¯s face turned serious as did his voice. ¡°We can always meet on the field and fight.¡±

    Akata was brought back to his senses and he looked seriously at Huihe Ji. Then a smile appeared on his face as it became shockingly calm. ¡°Then let us meet on the field. I¡¯ll see you then.¡± Akata said as he turned around and left. As he did he let out a heavy sigh. ¡®Man! I almost lost it back there, what the actual fuck was that? I¡¯ve never lost control so much over wanting to fight someone. Not even when I was facing Tabet or Alabasta was it that intense. I actually lost control of my mind and started to rotate my runes. Luckily he snapped me out of it.¡¯ Akata shook his head shamefully.

    He was walking toward the exit and on his way passed by Peizhi Xiuying. ¡°I¡¯ll be going to train some in preparation of the exam. Good luck.¡± He said.

    ¡°Akata¡­ I want to tell you something.¡± Peizhi Xiuying said with great hesitation as Akata had walked a few steps away. She saw him turn to look at her and she struggled to get the words to come out of her mouth. ¡°I¡­ I¡¯m going to fight you.¡± She finally managed to say with great effort. ¡°Not just fight you but I will give it my all in this exam. If we happen to meet then I will bring my all to shake you. I won¡¯t be holding back at all. This is something I must do so¡­ don¡¯t you hold back either! Not on me or anyone else.¡± With that she briskly turned around and started walking away.

    Akata was left standing there slack jawed for a moment before firmly nodding his head. ¡®Alright! I¡¯ll give it my all too.¡¯

    ***

    Akata¡¯s dorm room. It was the same old gray tone that filled every inch of this place. Sure the training and techniques were wonderful in this sect, but when it came to living conditions, it was trash at best.You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

    He sat on his bed and then took out the jade that he was handed back in Red Cloud Hall. He reviewed it in more detail and began to memorise all of its contents. It was only the basic parts of the Thundercloud Brigade technique so it didn¡¯t take long to fully memorise its contents. It wasn¡¯t even that hard to understand the simple use of it either. By contrast the Red Cloud Formation¡¯s outer section was harder to comprehend.

    After quickly analyzing the technique Akata put it to the back of his mind. It had only taken him a few seconds to fully master the Red Cloud Formation¡¯s first part and the Thundercloud Brigade technique was even easier than that.

    ¡®This was just too easy to master. But the principles behind it and the power this gives is simply monstrous to behold. There¡¯s no way anyone can stand up to this technique. In fact it might be possible to¡­¡¯ Akata¡¯s eyes became bright as understanding flashed through them.

    He quickly gathered his thoughts and then began to look into other things as he formulated his own plan and strategy for tomorrow. It took him a few hours to finally formulate everything but in the end he was ecstatic.

    ¡®Hehe! With this I¡¯m sure that I¡¯ll become one of the Dragon Knight¡¯s of the Cloud Corps.¡¯ Akata let out a long breath and then began to meditate and rest up. Tomorrow would be a big day.

    ***

    Red Cloud Hall

    All of the disciples of the sect had gathered in front of Red Cloud Hall as per the orders given to them. Most of them didn¡¯t know what was going to happen for the Red Cloud Sparring Day exam. It was pretty much the same every year but some things would obviously change from time to time to make it different somewhat.

    Everyone was talking to each other and trying to guess at what was going to happen this year. Some people had wild ideas while others were much more realistic.

    ¡°Maybe they¡¯ll have us all go through some kind of war simulator. Like we¡¯re behind enemy lines by ourselves and have to find our way out.¡±

    ¡°Waah? No way! There¡¯s no way that they have all of the Elder¡¯s fight us in order to increase our battle instincts. That¡¯ll be a massacre.¡±

    ¡°What if we just have a regular tournament style exam where the top spots get the best positions.¡±

    The only one¡¯s who were mostly silent however, were the few disciples that had been summoned to Red Cloud Hall yesterday. They all had looks of determination and eagerness.

    ¡°Disciples of our Red Cloud Sect.¡± A celestial voice called out that captured the hearts and sounds of all the disciples present. A lovely figure in a skin tight white dress walked out from Red Cloud Hall. She looked as if she were a goddess among goddesses. Her hair swayed back and forth as if following the motion of her hips. Second Elder stopped in front of the crowd and looked at all of them, a slight smile on her face.

    ¡°Today is the day that the Red Cloud Sparring Day exam shall occur. As all of you know, things will surely be different this time around. With the war that is underhand we have made changes to this year¡¯s Red Cloud Sparring Day exam. First and foremost it will be a team based exam.¡± She looked out and saw that a bunch of disciples started chatting.

    ¡°Silence.¡± She didn¡¯t speak loudly but the field of people instantly calmed and quieted down. ¡°The exam will be team based and the leaders have already been chosen. Will the leaders please step forward.¡± Second Elder nodded with her head and motioned for the leaders to step forward.

    A total of thirteen people stepped forward and stood in front of the crowd. Akata and the rest could feel and see all of the eyes of the disciples landing on them. Some of those eyes were filled with avarice, greed, envy, hatred, curiosity, disgust, and other emotions.

    All of a sudden a red light appeared right beside Second Elder. Out of the red light stepped out two figures, one was a rather skinny looking male in a white robe and a red greatsword strapped to his back, while the other was a beautiful maiden that looked as if she came straight from a man¡¯s dream.

    A small commotion stirred up when the people saw the two together.

    ¡°Swordlife get over there.¡± Sect Leader Fu said calmly. After that she stepped back and didn¡¯t say anything further.

    ¡°Now. These are your leaders. They have been selected based off of their individual performances, talent, judgements, and other things. Simply put, they are more than qualified to apply for the position of a leader. But that doesn¡¯t mean they are guaranteed a spot as a general of their own squadron. And it doesn''t mean you don''t have the chance to become one. Each team will have to complete objectives and the more objectives completed and points gained, the better your chance at getting a great position.

    Teams have already been selected so gather around your team leader for more instructions. After I brief you on more things I¡¯m sure that they will have some stuff to go over with you to make sure that you succeed right along with them.¡±

    Jades appeared in the hands of the various disciples and they quickly read through and confirmed who their team and leader was. After gathering there and getting more instructions and the general way of how the exam was going to be held, they took to their own positions to listen to their leader.

 Chapter 139: Hidden Seal

    Akata stood off to the side and waited for his team to gather around. After a brief moment, his team started to walk in his direction. There were some people with some okay cultivation levels around the 7th Grade and others had lower one¡¯s around the 4th Grade. The lowest cultivator was at the 3rd Grade however.

    ¡°So we have to listen to Akata? Who would¡¯ve thought that you would outclass us one day?¡±

    ¡°Eh? You¡¯re only one level higher than me, you¡¯re not worth listening to.¡±

    ¡°You just came back and you¡¯re already a leader? You¡¯re probably not even that strong.¡±

    ¡°I wish I could¡¯ve been on Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s team. She¡¯s the second strongest disciple right now. Sigh¡­¡±

    Akata listened to the people speak and he couldn¡¯t help but be taken aback. These people didn¡¯t even know what kind of skill he had yet they were already criticizing him and his capabilities. How would they act when they had to actually team up and work together?

    Akata¡¯s mind started racing. ¡®How am I supposed to get them to acknowledge me? If they don¡¯t even do that then there¡¯s no way they will follow me in battle.¡¯ Akata thought to himself. ¡®Maybe I can just show off my strength on the field? Or just assert my dominance right now? No no that doesn¡¯t fit my style at all.¡¯ Akata had never really worked in a group before and he had never lead a group before either. This would be a totally new experience for him.

    ¡°Alright everyone has gathered at their leaders. You have 15 minutes to discuss your plans and the exam will then start. The time limit is one day. Try not to die.¡± The last sentence spoken by Sect Leader Fu sounded extremely cold to the ears. All of a sudden a red light flashed past the bodies of everyone present and with a whoosh they all disappeared.

    ***

    Within the Outer Ring of Misty Forest.

    Akata and his group appeared in a forest surrounded by trees. They all looked around and found it to be quiet and still. Looking up, they could see a red barrier of some kind locking them in. It was obviously set up to keep them safe for a little time.

    ¡®I didn¡¯t expect to be teleported to a random part of the forest like this. So once 15 minutes are up then this barrier will be taken out and we¡¯ll have to start immediately?¡¯ Akata took in a slow deep breath and then released it. He looked at his teammates.

    ¡°This is our Red Cloud Sparring Day exam. I aim to receive the best results out of all the groups competing and to do that I will need your cooperation. If we are to be the strongest and greatest group then we will all need to work together. I will definitely lead you all to victory.¡± Akata said earnestly. ¡®I hope that was enough to make them realize that I can do this.¡¯ Akata looked at their faces closely.

    ¡°What the fuck? You think you have what it takes to lead me? I can lead a squad better than you can. In fact, anyone here is capable of leading. Just because the Sect Leader chose you doesn¡¯t mean that you have the right to lead us. My skill alone it enough to get us great results. Heh. You don¡¯t even look like you have skill in you. You might¡¯ve been good when you first started cultivating but you¡¯ve been gone for 2 months now and things have changed. We were raised to be monsters, anyone of us is capable of handling someone of a higher rank.¡±

    Akata turned to look at the person who spoke. The man looked to be either 19 or 20 years old and he wore black fur pants with no shirt on. He looked extremely buff and his features were quite handsome. His short spiky hair and his bold gold eyes made it so that he stood out from amongst the crowd of people.

    Akata frowned. ¡°Basik Bufmann, your cultivation level is at the 8th Grade as well yet you weren¡¯t chosen to be a leader. Instead you had be under my command. I was chosen because I proved that I had the skill. Do you doubt my skill then?¡± Akata was planning on taking it easy but he could not let someone deny his strength and skill.

    ¡°Heh.¡± Basik Bufmann chuckled slightly. ¡°You may have skill in leading but we are at the same cultivation level. I can fight those at the 9th Grade because I was trained to but you just got here. You would obviously be weaker than me. Why would I follow those who are weaker than me? Why would any of us follow someone who is a weak spineless leader? If you ask me, I¡¯m more fit than you will ever be.¡± A wicked smile appeared atop his otherwise bold face.If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.

    The disciples started to nod their heads at this words. It was true that all of them could fight those with higher cultivation levels because they were trained to do so. But Akata had been sent somewhere else for the past two months. Even if he was a monster when he first started cultivating, it had been two whole months since he had gotten any training. That¡¯s two months worth of the monster like training that he missed out on. There¡¯s no way he could be strong enough to fight Basik Bufmann who was on his same level.

    Akata looked around at the disciples who were starting to agree with Basik Bufmann. ¡®Urghh. Someone had to make it difficult, didn¡¯t they?¡¯ Akata started to get frustrated as time went on. They were getting nowhere and time would soon start. ¡®I can¡¯t let my frustration show otherwise it¡¯ll really make them think that I can¡¯t lead them.¡¯

    Akata thought for a quick moment before an idea popped into his head. ¡®Ah! That¡¯s something that I can do. Why didn¡¯t I think of this before?!¡¯ Akata looked deeply at Basik Bufmann and the smiled calmly. ¡°You say that I don¡¯t have the strength to compete with you because I wasn¡¯t trained to be a monster, right?¡±

    ¡°Huh? That¡¯s right! We¡¯re all monsters here except for you. We¡¯ve been cultivating for two months straight in order to become monsters that can fight with those with a higher cultivation level than us. Someone like you, who didn¡¯t have to go through that wouldn¡¯t understand. Heck, you probably wouldn¡¯t even be able to withstand the things we went through.¡± Basik Bufmann laughed.

    ¡°Well, I guess you wouldn¡¯t be wrong to say that I wasn¡¯t cultivating to be a monster¡­¡± Akata paused and looked at the crowd. At the same time he rotated his cultivation bases. His 8th Grade Mortal Rank, 7th Grade Seed Rank, and his 1st Grade Imp Rank cultivation bases all started to rotate with full strength. He rotated his golden rune which brought along an intense pressure upon all of the disciples in front of him.

    All of the disciples including Basik Bufmann started to tremble and cold sweat dripped from their foreheads and their backs. They didn¡¯t see Akata as a regular disciple now but as a towering beast that could annihilate anything he saw fit. Their eyes constricted heavily and some even fell to the ground in utter despair.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t cultivate to be a monster. Monster¡¯s are only mediocre. They aren¡¯t even qualified to mentioned in front of me. No¡­ I don¡¯t want to be something so trivial. Something that is so easy to attain that all of you can acquire it in a mere two months. What I strive for is something different. Something that is much more difficult to make into reality. I didn¡¯t want to become a monster¡­ I wanted to become a god.¡±

    Akata let out his ambitions. He let his strong will encompass all of the disciples. He would let his goal, his drive, his own motivation, stir their emotions and make them choose to follow him. He didn¡¯t ask them to follow him because of his strength, or his skill, or even because he was chosen to be a leader. No, he just poured out his strong convictions and made that sway their inner hearts.

    All of the disciples looked on at Akata and they couldn¡¯t disguise the fact that they were awestruck. What kind of ambitions did he have, what kind of goal did he want to attain. Sure they all wanted to be strong and they thought that they had attained it in these two months. But¡­ Akata had wanted more than that. He wanted something that they didn¡¯t even dare to think of. Something that was heard in mere legends. He didn¡¯t want to be a mere monster, he wanted to be a god!

    Such a goal was outright laughable and even insane. But the strong conviction and will that he had spread out had stirred the hearts of all of those present. It was as if he were saying that it wasn¡¯t a dream that he had but a reality that he was going to make happen. It didn¡¯t matter if they followed him or not, he would still complete this exam and get the top results without them. He will come out on top not because he wanted to, but because he had to.

    All of the disciples were quiet and just stared wide-eyed at Akata. He no longer looked like a regular disciple, but a supreme being. They could see that his goal was within his reach.

    ¡°I¡­ I¡¯ll follow you!¡± A person called out. He walked over slowly and stood beside Akata. Once he got there he felt a huge weight lift off his shoulders. It felt as if just being on Akata¡¯s side there was nothing to worry about. He felt confident on taking on anything and pride filled his body. He looked at all of the rest of the disciples in the eyes and his grin showed his attitude.

    ¡°Y¡¯all just gonna stand there or wha¡¯? Come¡¯n!¡± He was only at the 4th Grade but his voice seemed to contain some of Akata¡¯s will within it. It made the disciples jump and come to their senses. Why wouldn¡¯t they want to follow someone like this?

    ¡°I¡¯ll back you up!¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll lend you a hand!¡±

    ¡°Use my strength!¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ll help you reach your goal!¡±

    One by one the disciples walked over and stood by Akata¡¯s side. As soon as they stood by him they felt a huge relief. Strength and courage surfaced through their bodies, the likes of which they had never felt before. It wasn¡¯t actual power coursing through their veins but something else. It was absolute confidence in their leader!

    Basik Bufmann stood off to the side by himself staring at the group of people looking at him. He looked alone like an outcast. His pride had washed away and his demeanor from before was gone without a trace.

    Akata raised an eyebrow at him. ¡°If you still don¡¯t believe me then if you want you can always fight me for this position.¡± Akata said calmly.

    It was too calm of an attitude. The type of calm that struck fear in people¡¯s hearts. This type of calm, coupled with Akata¡¯s transcendent demeanor clenched at Basik Bufmann¡¯s soul. ¡®What am I doing? He¡¯s more than a freak, he¡¯s more than a monster. Why¡­ why am I still standing here?¡¯

    He tried to open his mouth to say something but he just couldn¡¯t get the words out of his mouth. It was as if his body was intentionally hesitating about something. Akata looked a bit closely at him. All of a sudden black light emitted from his body as he appeared right in front of Basik Bufmann. He lifted his hand as he touched Basik Bufmann¡¯s forehead.

    ¡°Ah!¡± Basik Bufmann let out a sudden cry. It felt to him like a huge burden had been lifted from his mind. He immediately dropped down to his knees. ¡°Thank you Akata for showing me the way. I will follow you and together we will reach the top spots of this exam.¡± He spoke earnestly as he bowed towards Akata.

    ¡°There¡¯s no need for that, it was something that I have to do. You¡¯re all my teammates after all.¡± Akata said with a light smile. But deep in his mind he had other thoughts. ¡®There was a magic seal in his mind that prevented him from following me. It was extremely weak though and was easily dispelled but who couldn¡¯t set it there? Was it intentional for the test? Or was it something else?¡¯ Akata¡¯s thoughts raced but on the surface he looked calm. ¡°Now let¡¯s go over this plan of mine. We only have about five minutes before this barrier comes down.¡±

 Chapter 140: Red Cloud Sparring Day

    If Akata had known that he had just dispelled one of the tests in the exam he would have thought it was okay. But what he didn¡¯t know was that it wasn¡¯t only a test, but it wasn¡¯t even meant to be seen in the first place. Basik Bufmann was meant to turn traitor midway and Akata would¡¯ve had to kill him. This was set up by the Sect Leader and each group had one such person in the midst. Who would¡¯ve thought Akata would actually notice this before it even went off.

    Sect Leader Fu watched the whole thing happen and stood up from her throne. ¡®How could he have possibly noticed that seal that I placed on him?! It¡¯s impossible for anyone that¡¯s not an immortal to even suspect anything yet he actually found it. Just how was he able to do it?¡¯ Sect Leader Fu was extremely skeptical of what had just happened. It was too direct for it to be a mere coincidence.

    ¡®Akata¡­ just what kind of secrets did you keep for this body of yours?¡¯ Sect Leader Fu sat back down and sighed to herself. Her eyes looked lost, clearly she was reminiscing about that past. After a brief moment she let out another sigh as her face became normal again. She looked calm and refocused her attention on the exam.

    ***

    ¡°... And that¡¯s the plan.¡± Akata let out a long breath as he finished talking. The other disciples nodded their head in understanding and appreciation. It was a superb plan and would definitely get them to the Center Circle.

    A weird droning sound could suddenly be heard all around them. It wasn¡¯t in just their location but from a distance too. Clearly, it was happening all over Misty Forest. A voice resounded throughout the forest and entered everyone¡¯s ears.

    ¡°The time for planning is up. We shall start now.¡± The red barriers surrounding the disciples started to disappear from the top. Once it was fully gone then they would be able to rush out and begin the exam.

    ¡°Like I said guys. We should complete as many objectives as we can as we move forward. Bur Gers and Laim Oh will flank from the right while Fou Rest and Ran Bow will flank from the left. Basik Bufmann and Sumting Wong will be in the middle while the rest of you all will be in the back supporting. Eliminate all beasts in the area and capture the ones that I mentioned. If they are too strong and capture is not possible immediately aim to kill.¡±

    Whoosh! The barrier completely disappeared as a huge wind swept up. Akata spread his nature sense out to encompass all of his groupmates. He took the first step out of the barrier and looked through the forest. He would be leading the team so it was only right that he was the frontrunner. The rest of the team would be behind him.

    Almost as soon as he stepped out, growls and roars could be heard all around them. A smile pulled at Akata¡¯s lips. ¡°And most of all team¡­ Let¡¯s have some fun!¡± He laughed as a Fanged Monkey jumped toward him from atop a tree. He looked at it as his nature energy ferociously bombarded the beast. The Fanged Monkey became still as it tried to protect its body from the huge amount of nature energy present. This stillness made it easy for Akata to grab it mid air and throw it into the bag meant to collect the beasts.

    Without stopping he took more steps forward and began his march toward the center of the forest. All of the groups were teleported to the Outer Ring to begin their exam. Thus, even the weakest of the group was able to kill these beasts without even looking at them, to say nothing of the others. To the group it seemed like a walk in the park as they strode along easily.

    They even started to have normal conversations as they went along. The beasts in the Outer Rings were too easy to deal with after all. Akata had decided that they would capture the beasts they encountered in the Outer Rings. Capturing beasts from the 1st to the 4th Grade would award 5 points each. So there was no need to go all out and kill them if this part was so easy. Once the beasts passed the 4th Grade and entered the 5th things would get trickier. From the 5th to the 8th Grade captured beasts were worth 10 points. From the 9th to the 10th they were worth 25 points. Any higher than the 10th Grade, say from the Great Circle to the Half-step were worth 50 points. And if they were in the Beast Rank then the points would be higher than 100.Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings.

    Killing the beasts awarded lower points since it was easier to kill than to capture. 1st to 4th Grade awarded 1 point, 5th to 8th Grade awarded 5, 9th to 10th awarded 15, Great Circle and Half-step awarded 30, while Beast Rank would be more than 75 points. The huge displacement on points obviously showed that capturing was more favorable than killing. Therefore, if they could, capturing would be the top priority over killing.

    ¡°Hmm?¡± Akata stopped and held up his hand. ¡°There¡¯s a Pixy Harbringer around here.¡± Akata kneeled down and touched the ground with his golden arm. Closing his eyes and spreading his nature sense further he tried to pinpoint the location of the plant. After a brief moment he opened them and pointed off in a direction. ¡°Laim Oh, two steps back, turn to your right, three steps forward, and looked down at a 60 degree angle.¡± He gave the direction and Laim Oh followed them to a tee.

    In his sights could be seen a mulit-colored plant with five leaves on it. It looked like the cross between a venus flytrap and a sunflower. It was extremely beautiful and emitted a soft aroma.

    ¡°Ah! Here it is!¡± Laim Oh carefully picked the plant up and gave it over to Akata. Everyone was astounded by his capabilities of locating various items that were asked for in the objectives. ¡®This must be divine sense! My divine sense is weak, but his¡­ it must be outstandingly strong.¡¯

    Laim Oh was right to think that Akata¡¯s divine sense was strong but he would¡¯ve been shocked to find out that Akata didn¡¯t even like to use his divine sense. His nature sense was much more easier to use and it was more powerful. Coupled with him being in an environment like this, it could be said that Akata had the best sensing capabilities out of all of the leaders.

    ¡°Let¡¯s keep going.¡± Akata led the way through the forest at a moderate speed. He was leisurely taking his time. He knew that if he rushed things, his group would get tired out. It was better to pace yourself than to rush. They did have to last a whole day in here after all.

    Even at their moderate speed however, they quickly made it through the Outer Ring and made it to the mist that separated the Middle Ring. They all took deep breaths. Some of the disciples in this group had never even made it to the Middle Ring before. Some of the other, more powerful disciples, however had anxious faces. They had made it to the Middle Ring before, but had never fully crossed it. Now would be the time.

    Akata still had a calm look on his face. Even two months ago the Middle Ring was pretty much nothing to him. But that was because he had only really reached the outer portions of the Middle Ring. The outer portion of the Middle Ring was considered really weak compared to the other portions. Once one reached the middle portions things would get really tough. Only the true elite disciples had ever made it to the inner portions of the Middle Ring and out of all the disciples, only Huihe Ji made it to the Inner Ring.

    Akata guided his group through the mist. In the mist it was fairly calm and beasts would barely reside within it. Therefore, this could be used as a resting place for the group. Most of the group sat down and recovered their strength. Even though it was easy for them to go through the Outer Ring, they still had fairly low cultivation levels.

    Akata stood off to the side looking out into the forest. As time went on, he slowly figured out how he should go about leading people. It wasn¡¯t good to completely order people around and it wasn¡¯t a great idea to be a pushover either. Then again it wasn¡¯t exactly fine to be in the middle as well.

    ¡®My way of leading isn¡¯t to have them run all over me or isn¡¯t to give out commands all of the time. It¡¯s simply to guide them to do what must be done. I¡¯ll show them right from wrong through my actions. That is why I¡¯m leading, that¡¯s why I¡¯m in the front.¡¯ Akata felt pleased with himself.

    ¡®Eh?¡¯ Akata turned his body to look off in a certain direction. He frowned slightly as he raised his hand into the air. ¡°We¡¯re moving out right now.¡± He called out. The resting disciples sulked but they didn¡¯t utter a word of defiance. Not only was Akata¡¯s will a driving factor for them to follow him, but his strength, senses, and skills were extraordinary. Almost immediately the group got up and headed out on Akata¡¯s command.

    Akata¡¯s face remained frowning. He didn¡¯t know what it was that made him want to move right away but he knew that it was the right thing to do. It was just a feeling that he had.

    Deep in the mist there could be seen a figure leaning against a tree. It was looking at Akata as he left with his group. ¡°Interesting. Could he have sensed my intentions?¡± The voice of the figure sounded ancient as if it had come from thousands of years ago. The figure chuckled and then disappeared.

    Akata all of a sudden felt that bad feeling disappear as if it were never there. He heaved a sigh of relief as he vigilantly scanned his surroundings. After confirming that there was nothing around he fully relaxed. ¡®I don¡¯t know what that was but it should be gone now. Judging by how intense I felt, it should¡¯ve been a strong beast or something. By how strong it was, it obviously didn¡¯t care about hiding itself, otherwise I wouldn¡¯t have been able to sense it.¡¯

    He didn¡¯t stop to rest, however, as he continued on through the mist. The group came into contact with a few beasts but they were merely at the 3rd Grade of the First Rank. After about half an hour of walking they made it out of the mist and finally stepped into the Middle Ring. It looked the same as the Outer Ring but the atmosphere felt completely different.

    ¡°Like I said before. If you¡¯re able to catch the beast then do so. But if it turns out to be too strong to quickly capture then don¡¯t hesitate to kill it. I don¡¯t want any casualties in my group. We¡¯ll make it to the end together as a whole.¡± Akata spoke some encouraging words to his group before leading them in deeper through the Middle Ring.

 Chapter 141: 3rd Section

    The Middle Ring was divided into three different sections. The 1st, 2nd, and 3rd sections. After one passed through the 3rd section they would make it to the mist to go into the Inner Ring. There wasn¡¯t a clear line to divide the sections but one could guess just by how tough the beasts were. The 1st section contained beasts that were at most at the 6th Grade. This was the section that Akata had made it to last time he was here.

    Even with the increase in strength of the beasts, to Akata and some of the members of his group, they were still nothing. If the beasts were too strong to capture for the weaker members then one of the higher leveled cultivators would take over in capturing them. As of now, they still had yet to actually kill a beast.

    The reason the weaker members would handle most of the work was so that the higher leveled members could save their strength for when times got rough and dangerous. Akata was an exception however, as his stamina and endurance was abnormal. He had three different cultivation bases after all.

    The 1st section was still nothing to the members of the group. They came across a bunch of different beasts, however. There were Fanged Monkeys, Blood Rabbits, Lunar Bears, and the dreaded Angelbat.

    The Angelbat was a bat-like creature that was completely white in color and had angel-like wings. It had horns on its head and back that glowed giving it a celestial look. But, it had a terrible cry that screeched out dark illusions to any targets in its range. Luckily, it only had four horns showing that it was only at the 4th Grade of the First Rank, otherwise it would¡¯ve gotten troublesome.

    Akata had to personally take action as his resistance towards illusions made him the only one capable of acting against it. It wasn¡¯t that the illusions were tough to deal with, it was just that they were mixed in with the darkness element. This darkness corrupted the mind further and only Akata had the capabilities to combat it.

    Needless to say, the 1st section of the Middle Ring was still nothing to the group and they quickly passed through it with ease. From time to time, Akata continued to feel a presence that eyed him and his group. As soon as he would act out on it, it would disappear however, so he wasn¡¯t able to come up with any clues regarding it.

    Scree! A cry came from up above and batted against the ears of the group below. Akata looked up with glaring eyes as a crimson streak flitted across them. He lifted up a hand and pointed at the incoming beast. ¡®Finally some stronger beasts. My soul element needs some work and only the stronger beasts can take on my attacks.¡¯ A crimson light flashed on his hand as it illuminated the forest.

    It flashed toward the incoming Angelbat and engulfed it in a crimson shade. ¡®Right now, I¡¯m able to identify the effects and sources of the things I study with my element. But what can I do with that information?¡¯ Akata¡¯s mind flashed with thoughts as he pressed his attack. The crimson light seemed to scan all of the Angelbat¡¯s body as it shone.

    As it did, all sorts of information was transmitted back to Akata¡¯s mind. It was as if he was receiving a transmission from some kind of message talisman or jade.

    Horns that protrude from its head and back, identify cultivation level

    It¡¯s cry is filled with the Inner Element of Darkness that casts dark illusions in the mind of its target that is within range of its attack

    It¡¯s blood is tainted with curse energy that is poisonous when consumed but can be refined for different purposes

    Information gradually poured into his own soul. At first, Akata had unconsciously done this through his skill in absorbing blood, but now that his skill with the Outer Element of Souls had increased, he was able to receive information without absorbing blood. The process of gathering the information was also much faster as well. It only took a single breath worths of time to get all the information he could from the beast.

    The Angelbat felt as if its secrets and identity had been defiled and that nothing about itself was hidden from this foe. It let out another screech in Akata¡¯s direction and flew in his direction, bent on attacking him.

    Akata let out a sigh and then waved his hand as a red mist rose from his skin. It rushed out and grasped around the body of the Angelbat before sealing its movements. The Angelbat struggled relentlessly. but to no avail before it was tossed inside of the bag with the rest of the beasts.

    ¡®All of my skills have some attack power except for my skills in the Outer Elements of Souls and Khaos. Khaos I can understand as I don¡¯t have nearly enough experience with it. All I can do with it, is use it to bolster some of my existing attacks. I should have manifested a skill for the soul element already, however. Maybe I need more experience with it?¡¯ Akata shook his head and continued walking.This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

    Stronger beasts kept on appearing as the group walked along. They soon came face to face with a 7th Grade beast signalling that they had already crossed into the 2nd section of the Middle Ring. They were moving at an easy consistent pace and if they kept this up they will surely make it to the Center Circle before the day ended. But that would be if the beasts were this weak throughout the whole thing.

    ¡°Let¡¯s pick up the pace now. We¡¯ll rest once we make it to the border of the Middle Ring and Inner Ring.¡± Akata spoke clearly. His words by now had pretty much become the edicts of law. His strengths, actions, and personality were vastly popular within his group. They had no qualms about anything he said and even if it was outrageous, he would take the lead and experience any potential danger first.

    The group gradually increased its speed. The further along they went, the smaller the sections became. But the beasts in the sections also became stronger and more concentrated. It wasn¡¯t uncommon for the group to come face to face with a pack of beasts congregated together. In these cases, capture was of secondary importance and killing the beasts took top priority. Only when the numbers were manageable would they consider capturing again.

    In the 2nd section, the beasts were as strong as the 8th Grade. Some of the members of the group were able to easily handle these beasts and so Akata could relax some. He still kept his guard up along with his nature sense. Although all the others had awakened their divine sense and some of the stronger ones were able to spread it out to a distance of over a hundred meters. Akata¡¯s nature sense vastly surpassed their acuteness and sensing capabilities.

    ¡°Hmm? A fast moving beast is in the distance. It seems to be keeping an eye on us. Basik Bufmann and Sumting Wong, look for a chance to attack it from a distance.¡± Akata said as he sensed the beast nearby. Basik Bufmann and Sumting Wong were the two strongest disciples within the group. Both were at the 8th Grade of the First Rank and like the others were monsters in their own right. However, they both focused on mid to long range attacks and weren¡¯t that proficient in close combat.

    They both immediately scanned the area with their divine sense in search of the beast that Akata had sensed. They spread it to a maximum yet when they did all their faces could do was show confusion. They didn¡¯t find anything at all.

    ¡°Could you be mistaken, Akata? There isn¡¯t anything in the area at all. Unless it is farther away than what my divine sense can reach.¡± Basik Bufmann spoke in a disbelieving tone.

    ¡°What do you mean? It¡¯s within 50 meters of us.¡± Akata turned his head and said with furrowed brows. Even now he still had the beast within his nature sense and could see its every movement. He was going to think that they were planning some kind of joke but both Sumting Wong and Basik Bufmann had confused looks on their faces.

    Akata stopped walking and turned to them. ¡°Are you saying that you can¡¯t sense it?¡± He asked seriously. He looked on as both of them nodded their heads. Some others even said that they couldn¡¯t sense whatever he was talking about either.

    ¡®I¡¯ve never heard of anything that can hide from divine sense before. Is it just divine sense because I can sense it with my nature sense. Or is it because of something else?¡¯ Akata pondered for a moment before making a decision. ¡°We¡¯re going to capture this beast. Nobody is to try to land a killing blow on it. I¡¯ll take the lead on combatting it. Left flank and Sumting Wong, support me in attacking it. Right flank and Basik Bufmann keep a watch on our surroundings. Everyone else make sure that it doesn¡¯t escape. Alright let¡¯s go.¡±

    With that the whole group instantly darted off, following behind Akata. It was only a distance of fifty meters and in a short few breaths they were in the area of the beast. Akata¡¯s eyes glowed with a gold and crimson tint as he waved his hand toward the distance. A streak of crimson and gold light descended on a tree and a loud screech resounded throughout the forest.

    Even though the group was now really close to the beast now, they still couldn¡¯t sense its existence. But Akata was able to find and sense it perfectly. The loud screech echoed and shook the cultivation bases of the group members. The only one¡¯s who were barely able to not back away were Basik Bufmann and Sumting Wong.

    However, all of their faces dropped and became pale. ¡°This beast¡­ it has to at least be in the peak 9th Grade. That means that we have crossed into the 3rd section of the Middle Ring.¡± Sumting Wong barely uttered while unconsciously taking a step back. If it was just simply power at the 9th Grade then he wouldn¡¯t have been so shaken, but there was something else mixed in with that loud screech that shook his very being.

    Akata¡¯s eyebrows furrowed as the screech entered his ears as well. ¡®That¡­ actually managed to shake my whole body? It¡¯s clearly weak but my mind, body, and soul were influenced by it? What kind of skill did it just use?¡¯ Akata was briefly shaken a little but that little made him extremely curious about the creature that was within the sights of his nature sense.

    Fwoop! Fwoop! Two flaps of wings resounded and shook the surrounding trees. Out of the canopy a second screech could be heard. This time more powerful than the last. Akata looked at the creature with wide eyes. ¡°Wha¡­ what kind of creature is this?¡± Although he was more prepared this time for the screech attack, his body was still shaken and he felt as if he had been weakened.

    Out of the tree canopy came an azure creature with wings. It had the body of a frog and its wings also looked like fins. A set of gills were on the side of its face and its wings were attached to its front arms. It had four legs that had feet with talons connected to the toes. It¡¯s body was slender and stretched out to 2 meters. It was obvious that this was a creature that could swim, fly, and walk on land, not only that but it could probably do all three extremely fast.

    ¡°I¡¯ve never seen this creature before?¡±

    ¡°What is that thing?¡±

    ¡°Have any of you read about some kind of creature existing that looks like this?¡±

    Akata only stared at it. His face becoming more grim by the second. His soul element was fused with that first skill that he used to probe the creature. He had instantly gotten information regarding the creature.

    Winged Skyfrog

    Capable of moving at fast speeds through the air, water, or land

    A beast that is capable of reaching the immortal level

    Innate weak aura control that lets it be capable of hiding its presence from weak energies and weaken the strength of others around it

    Innate water control that it can use to form extra appendages and body parts

    Babies start life at a cultivation level of the Second Rank

    Damaged babies with severe deformities will start off at the First Rank

    Each Winged Skyfrog is capable of using the most basic of aura energy

    Akata could only stare with his mouth open as information regarding this creature kept popping into his soul.

 Chapter 142: Facing the Winged Skyfrog

    Unbelievable. That was all that came to Akata¡¯s mind as more and more information from the creature''s soul popped into his mind. This Winged Skyfrog was simply a terrifying creature. Akata was only able to get simple and brief information regarding the soul of something, yet with the measly information he was able to get, it was already shock inducing.

    He shook his head. ¡®Now¡¯s not the time to be flabbergasted. This is a terrifying creature and from the information I got, I will be the only one who has a chance of stopping it. Right now I need to protect everyone.¡¯ Akata took in a deep breath as a fierce fighting will erupted from his body. He took a step forward while immediately calling out, ¡°Everyone step back. I¡¯ll handle this alone.¡±

    ¡°No! I¡¯ll help you out!¡± Basik Bufmann called out.

    ¡°Let me lend you my strength.¡± Sumting Wong also yelled.

    Akata turned to look at them. ¡°No. I want to test myself. Just watch the show.¡± Akata smiled and then turned back to face the beast. Taking in another deep breath he held out his hand where a scythe appeared. Swish! He swung it through the air where a black beam of light shot toward the Winged Skyfrog.

    The Winged Skyfrog quickly moved to the side, easily avoiding the attack. It let out another screech and shot toward Akata. It¡¯s screech shook the bodies of all the group members in the vicinity and caused their faces to pale. Most of them even fell down to the ground, unable to keep standing.

    Twisting his Blacksoul Scythe in the air, Akata shot out many black arcs of scythe-light toward the incoming Winged Skyfrog. His body lit up in a ball of black light as he moved away from the group in the blink of an eye.

    Seeing as Akata was the main attacker and that the other group members were weak, the Winged Skyfrog instantly changed directions and flew toward Akata. It happened so fast that the scythe-light didn¡¯t even have the chance to touch it.

    ¡®Long distance attacks won¡¯t work at all. It seems they¡¯re just too slow. I¡¯ll have to fight it in close combat.¡¯ Akata concluded from his probing attacks. After moving more than fifty meters away the Winged Skyfrog was hot in pursuit. It moved much faster than Akata could, there was no way to out maneuver it.

    Akata stopped backing up and then shot forward with his scythe in front of him. It was a straightforward attack that was fast. Perfect for what Akata needed at the moment. The Winged Skyfrog was going really fast and wouldn¡¯t have time to stop its charge and therefore would be right in the way of the attack. It saw that it couldn¡¯t get out of the way in time and therefore screeched once more.

    This screech was different from the other times. It seemed to have some mystifying power to it. When it hit Akata¡¯s ears, his body trembled fiercely and his posture was severely messed up. The Winged Skyfrog charged head first into Akata¡¯s chest and with a bang sent him flying.

    Bang! Bang! Boom! Akata¡¯s body flew through two trees and then collided with a hard rock. Blood seeped from his mouth and body as he struggled to stand up. He coughed up a mouthful of blood and then looked up.

    Screech! The Winged Skyfrog flew in his direction and then started to fly upwards. Water shot out of its arms and grabbed onto Akata¡¯s body like whips. Akata was forced into the air by the Winged Skyfrog and was completely helpless. It through him in the air, making him reach a height that would surely injure him severely if he fell all the way down.

    The Winged Skyfrog quickly turned and charged toward Akata. Maneuvering in the air was nearly impossible for Akata right now. Not to mention effectively attacking. He was completely vulnerable to the Winged Skyfrog¡¯s attacks. It would charge at him, swipe at him, and bite at him. Once it did, it would circle back around and continue its attacks. All Akata could do was endure and hope that he would land soon so that he could counterattack.

    Akata¡¯s eyes were completely bloodshot. ¡®What is this? I¡¯ve never been so humiliated in my life! I¡¯m completely helpless right now and not able to fight back at all. This damn beast is making sure that I don¡¯t fall to the ground so that it can keep attacking until I die. Ahhh!¡¯ Akata was at the cusp of losing his mind. He was unable to fight back at all.This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

    ¡®No. It wants an easy victory? I won¡¯t let it happen. I want to be the strongest being in existence and then surpass those who aren¡¯t even existing anymore. I want overwhelming power that will let me do whatever I want. I want freedom to do what I want, when I want, and how I want. That¡¯ my true aspirations.¡¯ Akata¡¯s eyes gleamed for the desire to be free of being oppressed.

    Just a few months ago, he wasn¡¯t even a cultivator and the whole sect would oppress him with their power. When he had gone to live with the Scarlet Tigers, many beasts over their were much stronger than him. The one¡¯s who had wanted to kill him could have done so easily if they had shown themselves. His life was at the mercy of their choice. That wasn¡¯t how Akata wanted things. He wanted to be able to do anything he wanted. That was his dream. And the only way to accomplish such a dream was to be overwhelmingly strong. Strong to the point that nobody could pose a threat to him. He would have to reach the pinnacle and then surpass that!

    ¡°Ahhh!¡± Akata screamed out and his head jerked in the direction of the Winged Skyfrog. ¡®How can I reach the pinnacle if I can¡¯t even handle this simple damaged baby of a beast? It¡¯s strong but its only a baby, its fighting tactics just aren¡¯t smart enough.¡¯ His eyes filled with a gold and crimson tint. ¡°Red Cloud Formation.¡± His body grew to a height of eight meters. He grabbed onto a wing of the Winged Skyfrog and then, with all the strength he could muster, threw the whole beast downwards.

    Bam! The Winged Skyfrog slammed ferociously into the ground below and let out a ear piercing screech. Akata fell to the ground and also slammed into it. He didn¡¯t have a way to slow himself at all, but luckily he was much bigger and therefore he didn¡¯t get injured as badly. He was still able to operate.

    The Winged Skyfrog got up faster than Akata did. It was barely injured in the counterattack that Akata had done. Shaking its wings, it quickly took to the air; a gust of wind following closely behind it. Letting out another strange sounding screech, it flew toward Akata¡¯s body.

    The strange screech made Akata¡¯s body feel as if he didn¡¯t have control over it at all. He hadn¡¯t even gotten up yet, but he already felt his body not cooperating. ¡®Ugh. I need to think of something. This weird power is really annoying. I don¡¯t even know what it is so I can¡¯t really think of a plan for it. Come on Akata! Think. Think!¡¯

    Akata clenched his teeth together and forcefully held out his arm. An azure vine spread out and covered the area that he was laying in. These vines let out a deadly demonic feeling that crept into the souls of nearby living beings.

    The Winged Skyfrog suddenly stopped its charge and changed directions to move away from the vines.

    Shwoop! A weird droning sound came from the vine and in the next instant everything was silent. The area that was covered by the vines had completely disappeared into nothingness, as if it had never existed in the first place. All that remained was the soil and rocks that were deep within the ground. Part of the tree canopies up above looked as if they had simply been obliterated, as if they were made incomplete.

    The Winged Skyfrog was just barely a meter away from the devastation. If it had been a second slower, it would have been annihilated right along with the area surrounded by the vines. Water wrapped around its body as it swung toward Akata as it had done before.

    Akata¡¯s use of the vine hadn¡¯t changed much but his control had changed greatly after all of the training he put into it. Using it¡¯s full power was impossible for him right now but using a very tiny bit allowed him to fully have it under his will. There wasn¡¯t any risk of the vine going out of his control. But that meant that it had to be fully under his control and therefore he had to use his own energy to use it.

    The tiny bit of power of the vine was immense and drained a lot of energy from Akata. The tiny bit made it so that he could only use this power once. Even if it was only once, the area he could unleash the vine¡¯s power was drastically limited. Only about 3 meters from Akata¡¯s body. This was a great reduction from the previous 299 meters. The damage and area were limited greatly but the energy consumption was drastically increased. It was a huge drawback with barely any benefits to speak of. That was why it was a last resort attack. The thing was, Akata couldn¡¯t think of anything else to do.

    This attack had failed and he didn¡¯t even have the energy to stand up anymore. He coughed up a mouthful of blood as his vision darkened greatly. ¡®I shouldn¡¯t use that anymore for a long while. I¡¯m nowhere near strong enough to handle even that small power of the vine.¡¯ Akata thought to himself.

    ¡°Akata, what are you doing?! Get up right now! Are you about to die to this beast right now? How could a mere beast that isn¡¯t even at the 10th Grade be a match for you?¡± Noluck yelled out within Akata¡¯s dantion region.

    ¡®I don¡¯t know how this beast is able to beat me. Physically it should be just about equal to me, agility and speed wise it¡¯s faster than me but not by much, and mentally it is way inferior to me. It¡¯s just that mysterious power that it has, it¡¯s like it weakens me and makes me vulnerable. Almost like he is able to take control of my body for a bit.¡¯ Akata thought this. He could feel the Winged Skyfrog coming closer.

    ¡®No¡­ I still can¡¯t lose. Not right now! I must win! I have to become the strongest figure in existence.¡± The later part of his sentence actually escaped his lips. He blacked out¡­

    ***

    Red Cloud Hall

    ¡°Don¡¯t tell me he¡¯s about to actually use up his life-saving power so soon. It is true he ran into a Winged Skyfrog though. That¡¯s a terrifying beast indeed. If it were any of the other groups I would have been saved them by now but I wanted to see what Akata could do. That demonic vine is really weird but even then, he still wasn¡¯t able to contend with it. Well¡­ that was the likely scenario after all. I guess I should-¡±

    Sect Leader Fu¡¯s eyes went wide as she stared at the scene before her. ¡°Ah! How is he able to do this already? That isn¡¯t his life-saving power.¡± She could barely speak as she looked at Akata. She slowly lowered her hand and looked deeply at the scene. ¡°Well then. I should relay this to father.¡±

 Chapter 143: Supreme Existence

    It was dark and desolate, nothingness reigned supreme in this region of empty space. There were no stars, planets, moons, asteroids, or anything else. The vast expanse was completely devoid of anything in existence. There were no signs of life or death, no signs of yin or yang, and no signs of black or white. It was just a field of blankness.

    Akata was floating within this field of blankness, his mind clear as no thoughts could come to his head right now. He felt empty, like a shell waiting to be filled with its host. His expression blank, no signs of emotions flitted across his face as he just floated in the empty area.

    Suddenly a voice rang out in the empty expanse filling the desolate place with a grand and astounding energy. This voice alone seemed to be able to make worlds with just the sound of its voice. It wasn¡¯t booming like a man¡¯s, or soft like a woman''s, but was more calm and reserved like a scholar or an observant. The sound of the voice filled the entire empty region of space and didn¡¯t leave one spot untouched. When the voice descended, Akata seemed to be jolted awake as if filled with a new sense of energy, as if a spark of life found its way into his very being.

    ¡°Let planets arise; filled with mountains, rivers, plains, clouds, and dirt.¡± All of a sudden countless rocks formed within the vast blankness. These planets were very normal save for one that happened to be directly in the center. It was utterly huge to behold and carried the sense that all other planets were beneath it.

    ¡°Let the stars illuminate my world.¡± Bang! Numerous stars sprang up around the planets and in the previously blank and dark space. They lit the space up and caused a shocking scene of a myriad of lights to appear in one¡¯s eyes. The star that illuminated the centermost planet was equally gigantic and blazed with a fiery white light.

    ¡°Let there be moons, asteroids, debris and mists that cloud my universe.¡± Universal debris appeared one after the other to fill the regions of space that were left blank. Although it was a small touch it was what was needed to bring this scene to life and completeness.

    ¡°Allow for the energy of life and immortality to be guided under the practice of my power.¡± As this was said, nothing seemed to actually happen. Everything stilled looked the same. It really did seem that this command had no purpose.

    Akata was watching all of this happen with glued eyes. He was astounded by this scene. Even more so astounded than his vision of Astral Obliteration being first used. Although he couldn¡¯t see anything occur, deep within his soul he could feel power stirring within his very being. He unconsciously looked at the giant planet in the center of the universe and couldn¡¯t help but feel attracted to it. There was a power calling out to him from this planet that seemed to rule over this whole universe. This power resonated with his own soul as if it belonged to him. Akata had no other feelings besides the desire to obtain this power otherwise he would feel incomplete.

    This power started off at the centermost planet and then rapidly spread throughout the whole universe. As if spread countless beings could be seen being born out of thin air. These beings all possessed a level of formidable might. The closer the one¡¯s were to the centermost planet the more powerful they seemed, yet they were rarer in number. The first being to be ¡®born¡¯ was actually standing atop the planet looking up rather confused. After this being was ¡®born¡¯ countless others started appearing.

    The stronger one¡¯s were born first and closer to the center of the universe but were less numerous. The weaker one¡¯s were ¡®born¡¯ farther away but were numerous. All these beings were powerful nonetheless and all of them were very different from one another. All of these beings had dazed and confused looks on their faces and were looking up in the sky.

    Almost as if Akata were born with them too, his face showed confusion as well. He looked up into the sky as well. What he saw made his eyes almost pop out. There was a humongous figure above the universe in a white robe looking down on the universe. There was a strange mist-like substance covering this figures body that  blocked out any features that one could use to identify the gender of this person.

    Seeing the creation that was just made the figure nodded their head in satisfaction and then addressed the beings that were just born. ¡°I am the master and creator of this universe. You are all of my creations and I have bred life unto you all. This will be my first universe within my territory. I shall call it the Aurasoul Domainworld. I have bestowed upon this Domainworld the power I comprehended throughout all these eras and used to rise to my current level,  It is called the Aurasoul Spirit Art. This shall be the art that you all train in to rise in strength and achieve immortality. Once you have achieved immortal lives, create your own arts and cultivation techniques. Grow strong and well.¡±

    The figure in the sky waved their hand and a grayish light appeared in the sky. It was enormous to the point that it covered the entire universe. Suddenly numerous beams of lights shot out from the gray light in the sky and merged into the bodies of the beings.This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.

    The largest and first being to be born that stood atop the giant planet received the largest beam of light. As he did, his eyes became clearer and sharper. He immediately kowtowed down towards the figure in the sky. ¡°I thank you creator for your gift and will lead this universe to greatness.¡± Clearly he knew his role after receiving this beam of light.

    After that the other beings started to kowtow as well towards the figure in the sky and let out various praises. Even Akata kowtowed toward the figure in the sky. This wasn¡¯t because he received the Aurasoul Spirit Art like the other beings but because of the tremendous respect for the power this figure wielded. He had just seen an entire universe get created like it was nothing, how could he not respect this kind of power?

    The figure in the sky nodded their head once again in satisfaction and then disappeared along with the massive gray light. Akata stayed on the ground just like the rest of the beings. This was a great amount of respect towards this almighty figure.

    ¡°You can stand up now.¡±

    Akata¡¯s eyes snapped wide open and his body stiffened before jerking up. He looked up and saw a figure in white robes in front of him. He couldn¡¯t make out the face but from the robes he could tell that this had to be the same figure that was in the sky just a few moments ago.

    ¡®Is this person talking to me?¡¯ Akata was deeply confused. Wasn¡¯t this a vision of the past? Akata had experienced many things already and had instantly understood that the events he was seeing happened very very long ago. So then, how could this figure be addressing him? He looked around to look for the being that this figure could be addressing.

    ¡°No. I am addressing you right there. I can tell that I didn¡¯t create you in the past and that you¡¯re a cultivator from in the future. I actually sensed a change in my memories and directly sought you out from this past vision you¡¯re having. Haha.¡± The figure laughed lightly.

    ¡®This figure went into a vision from the past of another person?¡¯ Akata couldn¡¯t even begin to think about what kind of power was needed to accomplish something like this. Akata looked as confused as ever.

    ¡°Relax. I¡¯m quite curious as to why you¡¯re having this vision as well. It¡¯s actually a bit strange. You¡¯re having a vision of me creating my first universe yet you¡¯re actually present as well. Hmm. It can¡¯t be that you¡¯re one of the beings here or a reincarnation of them either. All of these beings have unique souls that will follow them, even if their soul is destroyed. Yet you don¡¯t have that unique soul of theirs¡­¡±

    The figure before Akata pondered for a brief moment before coming up with something. The figure looked at Akata deeply. The eyes of the figure grayed and Akata felt as if his entire being was being exposed in front of this person. His very soul felt as if it was under the watchful eyes of this expert.

    ¡°Ah!¡± Akata was surprised and let out a shout.

    The figure quickly finished, not even a instant passing before they nodded their head. ¡°So that¡¯s how it is. I understand now. It all has to do with your past.¡±

    Akata gave another confused look as if asking for answers.

    ¡°Haha. I just looked at the memories of your soul, sorry about that. How rude of me. I''ll give you a gift. But I do have to say that you''re a very interesting person. If you''re able to achieve your goal then¡­¡± The figure stopped as if sizing up their words. ¡°Let''s just say you''ll do a lot of astounding things.¡±

    Akata was at a loss. ¡°You looked through the memories of my soul? And what goal? What memories?¡±

    ¡°Ahhh too many questions. If you''re able to meet me at my Aurasoul Whitewing Palace then I''ll tell you. But let''s just say your goal of being the strongest for now. Now now, for your gift.¡± The figure raised their hand as a small ball of multicolored light appeared above the palm.

    ¡°I saw that you train in many different arts but mostly focus on the Outer Element of Souls and Khaos and the scythe. The Outer Element of Souls is an Outer Branch Element on the Saint Path while the Outer Element of Khaos is on the Fiend Path. Most cultivators can train in the Soul Element but only those who have a cultivation base that derives from the Fiend Path can train in the Khaos Element. Once your cultivation increases on the Fiend Path you¡¯ll find it easier to train in the Khaos Element. As for the scythe, You¡¯ve learned from someone named Cultist Soulfire and even have some of the teachings of Dullahan. Your comprehension could be considered better than most.

    What you need right now isn¡¯t other techniques, a rise in cultivation, or even more comprehension. You need a stable foundation most importantly. With all of these things you¡¯re training in and all of these different cultivation bases, its putting a lot of stress on your body. I¡¯m surprised you haven¡¯t broken down by now. Only with a stable foundation will you be able to go further down your path to becoming the strongest. A strong building can¡¯t have an uneven foundation, only with a single even surface will it truly be worth building upon. Right now you¡¯re an uneven surface but once you become even, you¡¯ll soar by leaps and bounds. I¡¯m actually quite expectant of you. That is why this is my gift.¡±

    With a flick of a sleeve the multicolored light flew towards Akata¡¯s forehead where it merged into it. ¡°That should be about time. Hehe. I¡¯ll keep an eye on you.¡± Akata¡¯s vision started to blur as the universe around him started to turn misty. Eventually the mist turned dark and his vision was pitch black.

    The Winged Skyfrog flew directly towards Akata who was standing with a dazed look on his face. It¡¯s speed was terrifyingly fast to the point it couldn¡¯t even leave a blur behind. It was only a few meters away to begin with so it closed the gap between them in less than an instant.

    Just as it was about to slam right into Akata, his eyes sprang wide open. He instantly waved his hand as a multicolored light sprang up around his palm. The light slammed into the Winged Skyfrog and sent it flying into a few trees. Blood seeped out of its eyes and ears and its body was limp. Clearly it had died from this one hit. It didn¡¯t even have the energy to let out a single twitch motion.

    Akata¡¯s eyes were a solemn gray during this attack but after it was completed they immediately went back to his striking red color. He looked at his palm, completely forgetting about the existence of the Winged Skyfrog, as he etched the feeling of the power he just wielded into his memories. He couldn¡¯t actually use it but the figure from before had somehow taken over his body and gave him a taste of the power he could wield.

    A smile rose across his face.

 Chapter 144: Back To The Basics

    A smile rose across Akata¡¯s face.

    ¡®So this is the Single Existence Art.¡¯ This was an art that combined multiple things into one. It made it extremely simple to merge multiple techniques, ideas, or even cultivation bases together. It was basically the perfect thing for Akata right now since he was completely all over the place.

    How could it not be? He had three different cultivation bases, was a body cultivator, mainly trained in the Outer Elements of Souls and Khaos, was learning from two different yet powerful scythe arts, and also had his mysterious runes to worry about. Any one of these would make somebody a powerful genius, yet Akata had all these things to himself. Once he combined these things to make them more powerful, how dreadful of an opponent would that make him?

    ¡®I can only merge like-things together. But it¡¯s not a problem if I find something that makes them alike and then merge them together. This art is extremely powerful!¡¯ Akata couldn¡¯t help but take in a breath. If he could merge everything he is suited to and makes it one thing, then wouldn¡¯t that potentially multiply the power he could wield and make it easier to use? If someone was able to merge a perfect defense with perfect offense or even a super fast technique with an abnormally strong technique then wouldn¡¯t they be a perfect warrior?

    This was basically giving a turtle fangs and cheetah legs. Akata couldn¡¯t help but be overjoyed when thinking of the countless possibilities he could use this Single Existence Art for. ¡®Was it that figure that came up with this art or was it a different senior? Either way they are a paramount existence. Can I ever reach that level?¡¯ Akata thought to himself. After a while he shook his head and cleared his mind.

    ¡®I really have to meet that senior again when I¡¯m strong enough. He said to meet him at the Aurasoul Whitewing Palace¡­ I¡¯ve never heard of it and it should be a top existence considering that seniors status. It might not even be in this universe.¡¯ Shaking his head once more, Akata looked around and took notice of the Winged Skyfrog in the distance.

    He had seen the Winged Skyfrog die by his hand but he wasn¡¯t the one that actually did anything. It was all the figure¡¯s work. Akata walked up to the Winged Skyfrog and put it in his spatial bag. Finally he let out a breath and sat down. He was truly tired. That vision seemed as if it took a while but in reality less than a tenth of a second had passed.

    The time-lapse from the vision caused his mind to be refreshed but his body was still suffering from fatigue. ¡®That was a fierce creature. I wasn¡¯t able to do anything to it at all. That mysterious power that it had was able to somewhat control my body. If I actually trained then I could possibly stand a much better chance.¡¯ Akata shook his head.

    So far he hadn¡¯t really trained in anything. Just testing things here and trying things there. He had yet to actually train in anything. All he has really been doing was comprehending many techniques and abilities. Someone could tell him how to lift weights but if he didn¡¯t practice it then there was no way he would instantly become a world famous bodybuilder. The same idea applied to techniques and abilities. Only with constant practice and tutelage will one be able to increase their strength and proficiency.

    ¡®I¡¯ll have to make it an effort to diligently train from now on.¡¯ Akata promised to himself.

    ¡°Akata!¡± Suddenly a call resounded out. Akata looked up to see his team running towards him. The two were battling quite fast and were all over the place, therefore the group couldn¡¯t keep up with them. Only until the battle was over were they able to regroup.

    ¡°Hey.¡± Akata said with a light smile.

    ¡°What happened to that creature, is it still around?¡± Sumting Wong looked around warily while asking. He wouldn¡¯t be able to sense it so he could only rely on his eyes. The others were all doing the same and wanted to know the answer to it as well.

    ¡°It¡¯s dead.¡± Akata replied nonchalantly. As he spoke he waved his hand and the corpse of the Winged Skyfrog appeared in front of him. The others all stared wide-eyed at the corpse. Such a terrifying creature was actually killed that quickly? They had barely seen how fast it was and the power it had was immense. They were confident at all in driving it away as a group let alone killing it. Yet, Akata had been able to¡­ and from his actions it seemed as if with ease.

    ¡°How¡¯d you do it?¡± Basik Bufmann asked.

    ¡°I learned something new and tested it out. It happened to be very effective against this creature.¡± Akata just smiled.

    If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

    The group could tell that Akata wasn¡¯t going to share his secret and just resigned themselves to not knowing. After a bit more questioning on Akata¡¯s condition the group rested a bit before continuing on. They were really close to the Inner Ring and once they made it there it would be much more likely to meet up with the other groups. That is, if the other groups made it.

    The group walked much more slowly to compensate for their energy so they could handle the stronger beasts. The beasts in the 3rd section were as strong as the 9th Grade and all of them were terrifying existences, whether alone or in packs. The Scorchwolf was a fearsome fiery creature that sent out flames that burned the skin and blood. Only the members that cultivated the body could barely handle the flames, otherwise they would burn inside and out with no way of putting out the flames.

    Once again this was a creature that Akata had to mainly handle. The group noticed a change in Akata. After he had fought the fearsome Winged Skyfrog, he had only been using his scythe with no extra abilities. It seemed as if he was training exclusively in the scythe. Although they were worried that when they encountered a fearsome opponent he would only use his scythe, they noticed that his skill rapidly grew.

    Akata was indeed physically training in the scythe. He could feel his skill and connection to it slowly strengthen and becoming closer. He had thought that he was invincible within the sect and therefore didn¡¯t even bother physically training in anything. It was true that one needed stronger opponents and fiercer trials in order to grow stronger.

    Guillotine Slice. Silent Meteor Kill. Clear Passage. Dark Intent Ring. These were the four techniques from the World Omen of Lord Dullahan¡¯s scythe arts. They were already showed outstanding prowess to begin with but now they were slowly becoming more formidable.

    Guillotine Slice was a straightforward chop with the scythe. It used sheer speed and power to attack the opponent. There weren¡¯t any tricks to it at all. This was the first strike Akata would use against a beast that was fairly weak. His speed became faster and his power increased as he used it repeatedly. It was overbearing and brought great might and pressure upon an opponent.

    Silent Meteor Kill was an attack from the air. It was utterly quiet and fast and best used for assassination attempts. Akata would use this against fairly formidable beasts whenever he encountered any. As he used this his body was able to maneuver better in midair and he became faster and his swinging became quieter. Most beasts didn¡¯t even realize Akata attacked before their heads were chopped off.

    Clear Passage was the third stance of the World Omen of Lord Dullahan. It was also a straightforward strike like Guillotine Slice but its intent was completely different. It¡¯s purpose was to carve out a path within a group of enemies. Once enemies stepped on that path they would be continuously slashed at until they were no more or they stepped of the path. Akata would use this when walking or when packs of beasts were attacking. His skill in this strengthened the fastest out of the other techniques. The passages he would create could last for half a second before disappearing. Within that half second, Akata could use that passage to catch his breath or traverse it to move at a blindingly fast speed. His speed would be even faster than when he used the Shadowlight movement skill.

    The Dark Intent Ring was the fourth stance of the World Omen of Lord Dullahan. It was a protective stance that was able to defend and attack. It created an area that was controlled by the user for a short period of time. Time and space would be warped to the users command while inside this area and would be of great assistance in support. Akata would also use this stance in group attacks to get a feel for when to use the defense portion or the attack part. It wasn¡¯t able to attack and defend at the same so Akata had to compensate for that. But because of that, Akata¡¯s sense for fighting strengthened along with his use of the fourth stance.

    It was like this that Akata improved in his scythe arts and became much more adept at it. His comprehension could be said to be at the level of a Third Rank cultivator but his skill and prowess was only about the Halfstep Second Rank. Now that he was actually training, His skill was slowly moving towards the full Second Rank. Once that happened he would fully be able to battle Second Rank cultivators. He might not be able to beat them but he could definitely hold his own for a period of time.

    With Akata leading the way and doing most of the fighting, the group quickly made their way to the Inner Ring of Misty Forest. They settled down in the mist separating the Middle Ring from the Inner Ring. The mist was sort of like a safe place within Misty Forest. For some reason the beasts wouldn¡¯t venture into the mists and therefore it was safe to relax within it.

    Akata used this rest period to train in the Single Existence Art. He wanted to merge his insights of the Outer Elements of Souls and Khaos together. Ever since he saw the power that both of these elements could unleash together he had been fascinated.

    Training in this art was really easy. All one needed to do was slowly have the things that needed merging link together inside of the soul and then refine them into one whole batch. Of course, the concept ws easy to understand but actually doing it was much more difficult. The more things that needed merging and the stronger and more complex the thing was the higher the difficulty would be as well.

    Still. Akata was at a low level of both strength and comprehension in the grand scale of things. But as he trained in the art he quickly found a problem he would have to face. ¡®The things that want to be merged have to be on the same level as each other. If I want to merge my insights of both the Outer Elements of Souls and Khaos then I have to have the same comprehension level in both of them¡¯ Akata frowned slightly.

    His comprehension in the Outer Element of Khaos was much less than that of the Soul Element. That was to be expected since he started training in the the Soul Element earlier than the Khaos Element. If he wanted to merge the two together however, he would have to train his Khaos Element up to the level of his Soul Element.

    ¡®I¡¯ll have to comprehend more of the Khaos Element than I do the Soul Element but that¡¯s easier said than done. The Khaos Element is on the Fiend Path which is harder to come by while the Soul Element is on the Saint Path which is easier. Therefore, I would come across the Soul Element more often and therefore still comprehend more of it than the Khaos Element. That¡¯s not the only problem, if I wait too long to actually bring them both to the same level, then it¡¯ll be harder to actually combine the two of them.

    Akata quickly realized that he would have to face this problem with his cultivation bases as well. ¡®If I want to combine my cultivation bases then they would have to be in the same Rank and Grade. My Plant and Mortal Realm cultivation bases are closest to each other but if I combine the two of them then wouldn¡¯t they be much stronger than my other cultivation bases at the same level? If that¡¯s the case then wouldn¡¯t I have to have my other cultivation bases surpass the combined ones until I can combine the rest. And then that will have to continue.¡¯

    Akata felt a headache coming on as he kept on thinking about his predicament. But soon he calmed down and a determined look appeared on his face. ¡®Nothing comes easy anyways! I¡¯ll just have to get through with it.¡¯ Akata steeled himself for the future before resting his mind once more and going over his scythe arts and stances.

 Chapter 145: New Realms of Comprehension

    Akata was diverting his full attention to the scythe. He decided that he was going to merge his cultivation bases together once all of them were at the same level. Otherwise it would get pretty troublesome once he had to merge all three into one. His Plant and Mortal Realm cultivation bases were the closest together being at the Seventh Rank and Eighth Rank respectively so they could be merged soon. But if he did that then his Demon Realm cultivation base would probably have to surpass those combined cultivation bases in order to merge all three together. Akata didn¡¯t want to go through the trouble of doing all that and just decided to go about it all at the same time. He was already powerful enough without them being merged so he could wait a while longer.

    The reason he was focusing on his scythe arts right now was because this was the easiest way for him to comprehend the Outer Elements of Souls and Khaos while also training in the scythe. The Underdark scythe arts that was created by Cultist Soulfire utilized the Soul Element when using the scythe and also had a bit of the Khaos Element mixed in. The more Akata trained in this the more knowledge and understanding he would gain regarding these two elements.

    The World Omen of Lord Dullahan was a peerless assassination art. Although it was only the simplified version of the real deal, it was more than formidable enough for Akata to train in. The assassination arts were all encompassing and described many useful tactics and skills for varying situations. As was written in the book, if one wanted to become a peerless assassin then one needed to know how to adapt to any situation. Therefore it discussed different elements to train in, with the basics being the Core Elements of Fire, Water, Wind, Metal, and Wood. For those who could understand, it also went into detail about the Outer Elements, which included the Soul Element and Khaos Element.

    With these two being used as guidance, Akata sought to train vigorously in the scythe. The first thing he planned on merging with the Single Existence Art were his insights into the two elements. Once he was able to do that, with just a casual wave of his hand he would be able to attack the soul of any kind of matter, whether alive or not, and utterly obliterate the surrounding essence of the world. Just the thought would drive even immortal figures envious and greedy.

    Of course, Akata knew that it would be a long while before he could truly wield that kind of power. But, eventually, he would be able to!

    The team rested for a few hours before being filled with various emotions of excitement, curiousness, nervousness, pride, etc. A few months ago, most of them were too scared to even set foot in the Outer Ring of Misty Forest for fear of being killed by a wild beast. Now¡­ they were about to venture into the Inner Ring. Most people in the surrounding sects wouldn¡¯t even think about treading into Misty Forest, it could be seen how much the Red Cloud Sect had changed. They were actually using the dreadful and terror inducing Misty Forest as a training ground! If other sects heard about this they would surely die from bafflement.

    ¡°Alright, after we pass through this region of forest we will make it to the Center Circle. We¡¯re almost through with this and once we are, we will surely get top positions within the war.¡± Akata spoke swiftly and clearly. He might not have noticed but his other groupmates found that his words seemed to flow straight to their ears, almost as if it bypassed the air in between them.

    With a few more encouraging words, Akata led the group through the mist to enter the Inner Ring. This was the most dreadful part of Misty Forest. In the Inner Ring they could actually run into beasts that were at the Second Rank if they weren¡¯t careful. Out of everyone who had entered Misty Forest, only Huihe Ji had ever made it to the Inner Ring. This was because he was outlandishly strong. His strength had actually reached the level of the Second Rank. Therefore he could actually contend with the beasts in the Inner Ring by himself. The only other disciple that could maybe do that would be Akata. The gap between First and Second Rank was just too huge afterall.

    Akata obviously took the lead and had his nature sense spread out to cover an area of a hundred meters. This kind of distance was still nothing to Akata and it was comfortable for him. This way he could always be in peak condition when facing a foe.

    Akata lead the way but he didn¡¯t head directly towards the Center Circle. This was a trial afterall and they had to face beasts and gather materials along the way. Akata¡¯s group took a more snake-like path when traversing the area. Staying away from the stronger beasts, the group would battle the ¡®weak¡¯ beasts and then rest to restart the process over again.

    Most of the beasts in this region were First Rank 10th Grade beasts and higher. If they battled a group of beasts, Akata would always challenge the leader of the pack by himself. And each time he would only use his scythe and nothing else. He had found that his strength was too much and decided that he would hold back from now on in order to temper himself. But if a beast like the Winged Skyfrog appeared then he would definitely go all out.

    Akata¡¯s scythe seemed to directly bypass the air as he swung it about. It would always seem to directly find a way to the opponent without any obstruction at all. That was just what the scythe was. It was a weapon meant to directly attack with a clear path. It would slice through anything just to get to its target.Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

    Ever since Akata gained his other arm back his skill in the scythe had been increasing rapidly. He was extremely familiar with using it with one arm so adding on another one made it much more deadly. Since training in the Red Cloud Formation art meant having to fully understand the body, it made it that much easier to control his body movements perfectly. With perfect body control and clear and concise scythe arts, it could be seen how deadly Akata would be to face.

    Every beast that faced him valiantly would meet its demise soon after. They wouldn¡¯t even be able to touch Akata let alone beat him. Akata would fight until he either stopped gaining insights or the insights he gained weren¡¯t sufficient enough. This time, Akata had ran into a Halfstep Second Rank Lunar Bear. It was the leader of about five other Lunar Bears and it was a fierce battle.

    Basik Bufmann and Sumting Wong led the group to face four of the Lunar Bears while Akata took on the leader and the second strongest by himself! The leader was at the Halfstep Second Rank while the second strongest was at the Great Circle of the First Rank. It was a very tough fight for Akata as their use of gravity weighed down on Akata and made attacking very slow and difficult.

    ¡®They keep pushing me back and their strikes are really heavy. If this keeps up I¡¯ll have to increase my strength a bit.¡¯ Akata immediately shook his head resolutely. ¡®Impossible. I can¡¯t just increase my strength when I find a real foe. I just have to endure.¡¯

    Bang. Bang. Bang.

    Claw strikes kept hammering down on Akata¡¯s scythe as he stood there. The other group members were handling the four other Lunar Bears and if any of the two Akata were facing joined in the fray then some of the members would surely be killed. Because of this Akata decided to handle these two until the group finished with the four.

    ¡®These strikes are heavy and are overwhelming me. I have to hold on otherwise these bears will find an opportunity to break free from me and help out the others. My defense is severely lacking and their gravity control is only making it worse. It¡¯s like the area is under their control. Like they can bend space work for them.¡¯

    Akata¡¯s eyes widened with a sudden burst of comprehension. Have the area work for me! This is what Akata thought in his mind as jubilation crept up inside of his body. Akata immediately switched stances and held the scythe out in front of him. With a simple twirl the area around him started to vibrate slightly. The scythe started to glow with a violet light and the vibrating intensified greatly. Suddenly, Akata¡¯s body started to glow with the light as well!

    Khaotic Diffusion Lock! This was the second stance of the Underdark scythe art. It allowed one, through the use of the Khaos Element, to freely control the area around them to a certain extent. With Akata¡¯s current cultivation he couldn¡¯t do much, but using the air around him to take the blunt of the attacks and lessing the gravity on him was of no problem at all! With the overwhelming strikes of the Lunar Bears disappearing, they no longer held much of an advantage over Akata now.

    ¡°HAHA!!¡± Laughed Akata. ¡®I¡¯ve comprehended a skill related to the Khaos Element. And I even found out a whole new realm related to the scythe! Wonderful truly wonderful!¡± Akata was so happy that he actually blurted out his last sentence. Up until now, Akata hadn¡¯t been able to unleash anything related to the Khaos Element which greatly reduced his comprehension towards it. Now that he had a skill to go with the element, he finally found some ground to comprehend and train in it. This would greatly boost his efforts in his comprehension.

    Not only had he comprehended a skill relating to the Khaos Element he had also learned a of new side to using the scythe. Originally, he had thought that the scythe was only used for attacking, but now he found out that it was just as effective in defending, if not better! This brought a whole new understanding to Akata and made way for much more improvement in the scythe. Not only that, but the insights he would gain would be much more well rounded and useful in more situations.

    Before, Akata had only trained in the assassination art World Omen of Lord Dullahan. This was an art that was meant for quick stealth kills and even faster getaways. Therefore, there was no need for defensive arts. Especially in the simplistic version of the text. Maybe in the full version you could find a few but even then it would be rare.

    As for the Underdark scythe arts, they were created by a demon. The demon race was known for being ruthless and extreme and hardly ever came up with defensive stances. In fact, Cultist Soulfire wasn¡¯t even that well versed in the Outer Element of Khaos. That¡¯s why all he knew about it was its defensive capabilities, Otherwise he would have forsaken that defensive art for a few offensive ones. Given his nature, that defensive art was the only one that he created and it was only for the sake of tying down a foe to better attack them.

    Akata could be seen as extremely lucky to have even gotten a single defensive art related to the scythe from his two scythe arts. And he even got something related to the Khaos Element as well. His luck truly was too good. How could he not be happy right now.

    With the Khaotic Diffusion Lock helping him out, Akata was able to easily tie down the Lunar Bears until the group finished killing the other ¡®weaker¡¯ bears. After they were done, they all teamed up against the Lunar Bear at the Great Circle of the First Rank while Akata took on the Halfstep Second Rank Lunar Bear.

    Now that he was only facing one bear, Akata could fully take advantage of his scythe arts. He slashed violently towards the bear sending an arc of scythe light towards it. This light seemed to be attracted to the soul of the Lunar Bear as it aimed straight for it. This was the first stance of the Underdark scythe art, Soul Swipe.

    The Lunar Bear trembled and was dazed briefly. It raised its head to stare at Akata only to see that he had disappeared. Suddenly all the hair on its back stood on end as it felt a fatal danger coming near it. It looked in the sky to see a black light appear swiftly and watched as a person rapidly descended from it. It was clearly Akata executing the second stance of the World Omen of Lord Dullahan, Silent Meteor Kill.

    The bear raised its claws and the gravity around it increased by twofold. It brought a heavy pressure upon the descending Akata. Akata, who had just comprehended some of the mysteries regarding the Khaos Element used the second stance of the Underdark scythe arts, Khaotic Diffusion Lock. The effects of the amplified gravity was cancelled out and the area around Akata seemed to want to help him. His speed abruptly increased to the point not even the Lunar Bear could follow it. The next moment the bear saw the world spin as its head landed on the ground. It was still conscious and aware as it saw its body topple to the ground as well, then it blacked out.

 Chapter 146: Beast Foundation

    As soon as the bear was killed, Akata didn¡¯t immediately rest but went to take on the other Lunar Bear. That one was at the Great Circle of the First Rank and although it had expended some energy dealing with Akata and was now facing a group of more than ten people it still held the upper hand. The most powerful people of the group were Sumting Wong and Basik Bufmann. Both were at the 8th Grade of the First Rank and were, like the rest of the disciples, considered monsters in their own right. They could challenge people above their levels and even win some. But what they were facing now was a Lunar Bear at the Great Circle of the First Rank. It surpassed the 10th Grade in might and was a force that the group of people couldn¡¯t handle on their own.

    Akata knew this as well and instantly went to help them out. But as he approached another though crossed his mind. ¡®Why am I helping them out? They should use this opportunity to temper themselves against stronger opponents, only then will they grow stronger.¡¯ Akata gradually slowed in speed until he fully stopped and watched from the sides. If things turned dire then he would intervene but until then he would have them handle it.

    The Lunar Bear was obviously much more worried about Akata joining in the fight. It had paid attention when Akata had killed the leader and it was losing its fighting will. When it saw Akata heading over it felt as if all hope was lost, but then it saw Akata stop and look as if he had no intentions on joining in the fight. Joy overwhelmed the Lunar Bear and its fighting will rose along with the power of its strikes.

    Bang! Bang!

    Paw strikes were sent everywhere as the brawl raged on. Claw marks, fires, sword streaks, etc. all ravaged the land around. It was fierce to the extreme. Blood was thrown everywhere as injuries built up on the two opposing groups.

    ¡®Why isn¡¯t Akata helping out?¡¯

    ¡®Does he really have to rest at a time like this?¡¯

    ¡°I don¡¯t think I can hold on for much longer, help out please Akata!¡¯

    Cries for help rang out in the air while thoughts of abandonment suffused within the minds of others. The group was confused, helpless, angry, etc. They just didn¡¯t understand why Akata wouldn¡¯t help them face this powerful foe.

    ¡°Ahahaha!¡± I haven¡¯t fought such a powerful opponent in my life before! You call yourselves cultivators but don¡¯t even want to fight this thing on your own? Humph! For what reason do you train? If you don¡¯t face stronger enemies then how will you yourself get stronger?¡± Basik Bufmann called out while fiercely attacking the Lunar Bear.

    ¡°This is our fight in order for us to raise our strengths. We won¡¯t have Akata with us our whole lives so why should we call out to him to help us out. We are just as capable of fighting as he is. Let¡¯s take this thing down on our own and bring glory to our sect and ourselves.¡± Sumting Wong also called out while he fought as well.

    The group of people weren¡¯t dumb in the slightest. From the words of Sumting Wong and Basik Bufmann, and from the actions Akata displayed, it was easy for them to understand the situation right now. Yes this was dangerous and they could get heavily injured, but when wouldn¡¯t it be dangerous for them if they wanted to get stronger. The whole cultivation world was dangerous but out of those dangers was equal or greater fortune.

    It might be suicidal to face this Lunar Bear alone but with all these people they stood somewhat of a chance. There also wasn¡¯t any risk to their lives at all as this whole trip was meant to train and nurture themselves. So why were they asking for help then?Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

    The few people fighting in close quarters took in a deep breath and then abandoned all of their negative thoughts. Their moods switched over to ones of thankfulness and the like. Their attacks got fiercer and they themselves fought wildly. They were going all out. And with the frontlines going all out how could the rest not do the same.

    In truth, neither Sumting Wong nor Basik Bufmann understood why Akata was just standing there watching. It was only due to Basik Bufmann¡¯s sudden enlightenment of Akata¡¯s actions that he spoke out. The reason for this sudden enlightenment was because of the trace of energy that Akata had left behind when he broke that seal. There was a higher mental connection between the two now and they could understand each other more clearly.

    Akata was worried that his sudden actions of stopping would be seen wrongly in the eyes of the others. But he wanted them to discover his intentions so he didn¡¯t say a word. Secretly, however, he heaved a sigh of relief when Basik Bufmann and Sumting Wong spoke out on his behalf.

    Although the group had much more motivation and fighting will, that didn¡¯t put them in any sort of advantage. At the same time, they weren¡¯t at any disadvantage either. The two sides were locked in a fierce struggle for supremacy but were evenly matched.

    The Lunar Bear was surprised at the sudden burst of energy the group displayed and let out a roar filled with ruthlessness. Bang! The ground suddenly burst apart and the group was thrown back. Blood streamed out of their mouths as they flew backwards through the air. The closer members were directly knocked unconscious and were on the verge of death. Before they landed on the ground however, a gray light enveloped them and teleported them out.

    Akata was immediately surprised at the sudden turn of events. He rushed forward to hold back the bear while the group situated themselves and got to their feet. But once he got to the front he noticed something strange about the bear.

    It had become a bit more slender and wasn¡¯t as big and fluffy as it had once been. Its claws grew longer by half a foot. Its fangs turned into half a meter long saber-toothed shaped canines. The blue fur became sleeker and shinier. Its snake-thin tail became longer and wrapped around its abdomen as spikes protruded out of it.

    Akata¡¯s eyes instantly went wide with terror. This was¡­ a sudden mutation! Ming Lu was born and raised in the Holy Beast Kingdom and therefore knew a lot about beasts. Therefore, when Akata was her disciple she taught him a great deal regarding beasts. Even with all that information, she only briefly mentioned the phenomenon of mutating. It was so rare that it was considered a legend. But, Akata had actually seen it take place before his very eyes.

    The now mutated Lunar Bear charged at the first person it saw which happened to be a youth to the left of Akata. It raised its body up and slammed its front paws down on the ground. Boom! The ground trembled as the gravity in the area went out of control. Sometimes it was heavy other times it was light enough to make you float. This made it very hard for anything to move in this area. After its gravity attack, it instantly appeared in front of the youth and struck out with its claws. Swish. The claws hit nothing but air as the youth was teleported out with a gray light. The whole time he didn¡¯t even know he was being attacked.

    It all happened too fast. Akata had watched the whole thing happen but was too slow to react. The bear was still at the Great Circle of the First Rank but it¡¯s strength, speed, intelligence¡­ everything about it had been improved on fundamental level. It was completely like a new existence that couldn¡¯t be compared to its old self. It was about on the same level of the Winged Skyfrog Akata had previously fought.

    Akata was dumbstruck. The level of skill and the disparity of strength from the previous Lunar Bear and the now mutated one was greater than the difference between Heaven and Earth. It just couldn¡¯t be compared. If Akata hadn¡¯t seen it with his own eyes, he wouldn¡¯t have believed that this was just a Lunar Bear. This was just a fearsome foe.

    Akata couldn¡¯t remain slack jawed  and awestruck for long because as soon as the bear noticed that its previous target disappeared, it set its sights on Akata which was the closest one to it now. As soon as it did, it let out another wave of gravity to disrupt the movement of its target. As soon as it finished it rushed over with its utter speed, defying gravity along the way.

    But¡­ Akata wasn¡¯t a regular youth. He was instantly prepared as soon as the Lunar Bear eyes him. He held out his hand as the First Rank Bludhaven Scythe appeared. Akata had a better scythe, the Third Rank Blacksoul Scythe, but it was just too strong for him at the moment. He couldn¡¯t wield it at all. Any attack he tried to use would be monstrously stronger than when he used his Bludhaven Scythe but it would sap him of all of his energy, even if he wasn¡¯t even trying to use energy. What good was a weapon if it would leave you immobile after just one attack?

    Therefore, Akata¡¯s scythe of choice was obviously the Bludhaven Scythe that he could wield easily and bring the most use out of. As soon as the scythe appeared in his hands he executed the third stance of the World Omen scythe techniques, Clear Passage. Normally this was a skill used to safely withstand a group attack but this time Akata used it to get through the disruption of gravity. The scythe cut through everything and made a path that Akata could safely be in. Gravity wasn¡¯t even able to seep through to hinder Akata. Once again he was amazed and enlightened to the potential of the scythe. But this wasn¡¯t the time to comprehend some of the abilities the scythe was capable of.

    The Lunar Bear charged quickly and arrived in front of the Clear Passage. With a wave of its claws it instantly shattered the Clear Passage technique and went to face off against Akata head on.

 Chapter 147: Beast Foundation (2)

    The Lunar Bear¡¯s speed was monstrously fast. It broke apart the Clear Passage technique just as soon as it was unleashed and was in front of Akata in the next instant. It let out a roar and then swiped its paw towards Akata, looking to kill Akata in just a single strike.

    However, Akata reacted just as fast. The Lunar Bear wasn¡¯t built for speed like the Winged Skyfrog was, so Akata was able to keep up with it much easier. With a swing of his scythe, a black scythe light was unleashed from the scythe and targeted the Lunar Bear directly. This strike seemed simple but it was actually the combination of the Guillotine Slice and Clear Passage technique through the use of the Single Existence Art.

    Akata was able to combine even two different stances from the same technique. He had planned on combining the World Omen of Lord Dullahan and the Underdark Arts but they weren¡¯t on the same level. The Underdark Arts were at the Fourth Rank while the World Omen of Lord Dullahan had reached the Immortal level. There was no way to combine the two together completely. The only thing Akata could do was slowly accumulate experience from the two and mix certain similar things one by one. But if the two stances were on the same level then that was a different story.

    Water and oil were both liquids but that was all they really had in common, there was no way to combine the two at all. However, if you were to combine fire and wind, they were apart of the five elements, then they could truly fuse together. Making a conflagration or a scorching wind. The power of the two would combine to rise to new levels and this was only possible because they were apart of the same set.

    The Single Existence Art was truly marvelous. It was able to combine two things on the same level in no time at all. It brought one to a state of mind that made it much easier to understand things and pull insights together.

    Akata¡¯s strike was mixed with the directness of Guillotine Slice and the freeness of Clear Passage. He was able to combine the two to make a totally new skill that perfectly opposed the evolved Lunar Bear. The affected gravity wasn¡¯t able to hinder Akata¡¯s strike at all so it directly swept passed the Lunar Bear¡¯s paw making its attack miss Akata by a hair. Akata didn¡¯t stop there as he pressed on with his fused attacks.

    Guillotine Slice and Silent Meteor Kill. These two combined to make Akata¡¯s fastest attack. Once again it had the directness of Guillotine Slice and the utter speed of Silent Meteor Kill. The Lunar Bear was caught completely off guard from the attack and was pushed back. Unwilling to accept this it immediately charged back towards Akata with an even more overbearing pressure.

    Whoosh! Akata swung his scythe in a circle as a black scythe light appeared around his body. The light was pitch black but also glittered with white motes of light. The light covered his body like an armor and seemed to form to his body perfectly. Although it looked smooth, terrifying scythe intent gushed out of it. The nearby gravity was utterly unable to approach Akata giving him free range to do whatever he wanted. This was the combination of Clear Passage and Dark Intent Ring.

    Boom! Akata held up his scythe which was also covered in the black scythe light in order to block the strike of the Lunar Bear. The Lunar Bear was definitely not prepared for this collision. The jump in defensive prowess Akata just showed was unimaginable. The Lunar Bear was thrown back from the collision and suffered light skin wounds as a result of clashing with Akata¡¯s scythe intent.

    Akata himself just stood there dazed at how formidable this scythe intent armor was. Although it was extremely formidable, it also cost a lot of energy to form. This was what Akata found out in this brief exchange.

    ¡®The power of my skills increase exponentially when they are combined but the energy cost is also increased just as much. If it wasn¡¯t for my body being shaped and remolded to perfectly control a scythe I wouldn¡¯t be able to even put out two of these combined moves. Once I break through to the Second Rank I won¡¯t have to worry as much about spending so much energy, but for now I can at most use ten of these combined moves.

    If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.

    The scythe intent armor Akata had used up energy so long as he had it activated so he immediately cancelled the skill. Luckily, with but a thought, Akata could immediately cast the armor onto himself. This would make critical life and death moments much easier to deal with for him.

    Although his thoughts were on his techniques, Akata never forgot about the evolved Lunar Bear. After it had been thrown back it became thoroughly enraged. It raised its head into the air and let out a loud overbearing roar that shook the surrounding foliage. With its open mouth, a blue ball of energy started to form and condense. This energy seemed to control all the gravity in the area and shook the very foundation of the earth.

    Akata¡¯s face darkened when he saw this happening. For one, this attack was something that he was not capable of stopping, it was just too terrifying. For two, this was an area of effect attack. The evolved Lunar Bear was looking to attack the whole group at once to get this fight over with. It had truly become angered. Its first target had disappeared somewhere before it had the chance to kill it and its second target had actually wounded it. Thus it wanted to destroy this whole patch of land that these people were in.

    With Akata¡¯s speed he was very confident in getting away from the attack area and maybe even bring another person along with him. But he was the leader of the group and had to think of something fast to save the whole group from being eliminated.

    Swoosh! The Lunar Bear lowered its head and jumped into the air. The ball of blue light condensed further and then shot out of its mouth in a blindingly fast motion. The speed it was able to unleash wasn¡¯t inferior to the Winged Skyfrog in the slightest! In fact nobody besides Akata could even detect that it had been unleashed just now.

    Akata was at a complete loss of what to do right now. His mind went blank but his body started to move on its own accord. He wasn¡¯t retreating¡­ he was advancing! He made a vow that he wouldn¡¯t retreat from another opponent and subconsciously he was sticking to that vow. Akata used all three of his cultivation bases as he nearly instantaneously appeared in the attacking path of the blue ball. The area around the ball was already able to destroy gravity, just imagining what it was capable of once fully unleashed rendered Akata dumbfounded. But he still nonetheless stood there in front of the blue ball as it approached.

    As he saw it approach, his mind became clear of all distractions. It felt as if just he and that blue ball of condensed gravity were in the world right now. He could feel its existence and its very being. Everything that made it up was within his mind right now. He could sense its newly formed soul and how it was still strengthening as it flew towards his body.

    ¡®Funny, even these simple energy attacks have souls of their own.¡¯ Akata thought to himself. ¡®It¡¯s soul is new and young, it¡¯s even still gaining strength as it is coming towards me. Where is it gaining strength from?¡¯ Akata could feel the soul¡¯s existence becoming stronger with each passing moment. He closed his eyes and it felt as if a whole new world opened up before him. He could feel the world was lively, even within this dead and misted forest. But what he felt wasn¡¯t life, but the souls of every existence near him. He could feel some souls dying out, some being born, some strengthening, some combining, some separating, some transforming¡­ it was a brand new feeling for Akata.

    This was a new type of sense like nature sense or divine sense but at the same time wasn¡¯t a type of sense. It was much more than a simple sensing ability. It was more accurate, more in-depth, more lively. It could tell much more than even Akata¡¯s strong nature sense. He felt in tune with this feeling and it felt right to him, as if he had always been able to use this ability. All of a sudden his soul rune started to spin around crazily as if spinning with joy. Each rotation created a type of sonar feeling for Akata. It was as if a wave of soul power swept out with each rotation and each wave would cover the area and bring new information to him in an instant. It brought Akata a new feeling, this soul wave would let Akata know things about the soul that it passed over. He could tell which way the wind was going to blow, which leaf was going to fall off a tree, which egg would hatch out of a bunch¡­ and all of this would be told to him before it even happened!

    This wasn¡¯t a simple type of sense it was like a precognition! This was Soul Foresight! Only those who had reached incredible levels in the Outer Element of the Soul could use this ability. It was much better than simple Divine Sense or Nature Sense. It was actually telling the future and it all happened naturally as well. It was a passive ability that made one able to react to something before it even happened. This was soul communication, Akata¡¯s soul was able to communicate with the souls of other things and because of this he was naturally able to tell the future.

    There were other types of Foresights as well such as Fire Foresight, Star Foresight, Yang Foresight, etc. All elements had Foresights but they weren¡¯t nearly as formidable as Soul Foresight. The only way for them to contend with this kind of precognition ability was if they completed their set. For example, if Fire Foresight combined with Water, Wind, Metal, and Wood Foresight then it would be even more formidable than Soul Foresight. Also if Yin Foresight combined with Yang Foresight then it would be even more formidable than that.

    All the Outer Elements had pairs that could be combined. Yin had Yang, Holy had Demonic, and Soul had Khaos. Souls were found everywhere and therefore was much more formidable than even Yang or Yin Foresight separately. But if it combined with Khaos Foresight, the results would be unimaginable.

    Akata calmed his mind and focused on the blue ball heading his way. He could already perfectly tell its path. Even if the Lunar Bear was able to control the trajectory of this ball mid-flight Akata would still be able to know where it would go. With his new Soul Foresight he was able to see into the future a little but the most important part of Foresight wasn¡¯t the precognition, but the passive ability to communicate with the element the Foresight was connected to. And being able to communicate with souls was a really deadly ability.

 Chapter 148: Beast Foundation (3)

    Akata¡¯s soul was much stronger than people on his same level. He had the soul rune to continuously strengthen his soul, his cultivation bases as they grew stronger helped to nurture his soul, he had the teachings and techniques of Monarch Heartsoul and Cultist Soulfire, he had control over the Outer Element of Souls¡­ because of all this and more factors his soul was already comparable to the Second Rank. A mere attack that was conjured up by a being at the Great Circle of the First Rank had a much weaker soul than him.

    Akata willed it and his pulsating soul rune guided his intentions toward the incoming attack. With but a thought it commanded the attack to miss its mark.

    Boom!

    The attack, instead of flying downwards to the group, flew forward and landed many meters behind them. The group was flabbergasted and flustered. Fear still settling within their bodies and minds. That attack just now had destroyed a part of the forest, if it wasn¡¯t for the attack ¡®missing¡¯ just now they would¡¯ve all been killed or taken out of the trial. Sweat riddled their clothes and backs as they snuck a look at Akata who was standing in front of them.

    Akata was completely calm but to put up appearances he looked bewildered and shaken to the core. He couldn¡¯t let the group know that he had anything to do with that attack missing just now. This was a huge secret, if someone was to find out that any attack that was weak enough in soul strength than him could be controlled to miss him, what kind of danger would that put him in? Many major powers would flock to him for the chance of getting their hands on this kind of ability.

    After being ¡®shaken¡¯ for a while, Akata fiercely shook his head and steadied his bearing. ¡°Attack now, this is our only chance!¡± Akata yelled out. Indeed this was their only shot. The Lunar Bear had only just evolved right now and wasn¡¯t familiar with its strength at all. It had overdrafted its power with that attack and was temporarily incapable of fighting right now. This was the perfect chance to attack it. The group¡¯s will to fight instantly spurred on and their faces filled with determination and ruthlessness. They grabbed their weapons and shot out various abilities and attacks that aimed straight for the Lunar Bear.

    The Lunar Bear itself was bewildered as well. Although it had overdrafted its power, it was still capable of aiming. How could that widespread attack miss its target? It was at a complete loss of what just happened. The only thing it knew was that it felt as if its attack just now was being guided somewhere else. If its intelligence was higher than it would perfectly be able to tell that its attack just now was being controlled.

    It let out a hoarse roar and charged toward the group that was aiming abilities at it. Although it was tired from the attack that didn¡¯t mean it was going to just sit there and be hit. Akata was in the front of the group and therefore the beast shot towards him first.

    Akata had already been mentally prepared. He could tell that the beast was about 30 percent weaker than it had been a moment ago. But this 30 percent would quickly go away and it would be back to peak condition in no time at all. Therefore, Akata held nothing back as he charged at the beast, scythe in hand.

    With a wave of his scythe he sent out multiple attacks that landed on the Lunar Bear¡¯s body. Obviously this was just meant to slow it down as it wasn¡¯t able to injure it at all. Akata then jumped into the air and disappeared out of the sights of everyone. All anyone could see was a black ball of light cover his body before he simply vanished.

    Whoosh! The Lunar Bear felt a sense of danger rapidly approaching so it swiped its claws frantically as it didn¡¯t know where the danger was coming from. It still had a few more moments before it was able to use its gravity abilities so all it could do was physically swipe in the air and around its body. But who would¡¯ve known that it would all be for naught?

    A crimson gold light suddenly sprang up atop the Lunar Bear¡¯s neck as its head soon fell off of its shoulders. It¡¯s body was slow to react and let out one more final swipe as it soon fell down as well. The terrifying Lunar Bear was no more as it became a lifeless corpse that would soon rot.

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    Akata appeared an instant later bathed in golden light atop the corpse of the Lunar Bear. He had combined the Silent Meteor Kill stance and the Clear Passage stance into one and ha easily been able to slice through the body of the evolved Lunar Bear. just to be sure he had even added on the strength of his golden and crimson rune. Not even that but he had put his complete all into this one attack and had switched his First Rank Bludhaven Scythe for the Third Rank Blacksoul Scythe. Although it would leave him depleted of his strength, Akata didn¡¯t want to take any chances.

    After killing the evolved Lunar Bear Akata immediately sat down and started to recover as fast as he could. In this dangerous environment, it was essential to have as much strength to defend oneself at all times. He rotated his cultivation bases and to his surprise found that his Demon Realm cultivation base had advanced to the 2nd Grade. It was negligible in terms of strength increase but it was a step in the right direction nonetheless.

    The group didn¡¯t even need to be commanded in order for them to surround and protect Akata from danger while he was recovering. By now, they had a tacit understanding of their roles. They split up into two groups. One group would recover while the other kept watch of the surrounding area. That way they could make the most of their time and energy.

    Akata was fully focused on recovering his spent energy but he couldn¡¯t help but notice something strange with his soul rune. It was twirling around as if trying to get Akata¡¯s attention. With Akata¡¯s newfound Soul Foresight ability he had a basic understanding of what his soul was saying.

    ¡®Absorb the soul of the evolved Lunar Bear? But why?¡¯ He paid closer attention to it. ¡®It has something to do with that undeveloped white pellet in my dantion region?¡¯ Akata had always been wondering about that white pellet in his dantion region that had formed but seemed to be incomplete. This white pellet had came from when he was absorbing the strange energy within the wind when he was waiting to go back to the Red Cloud Sect. Back then the wind had stopped abruptly so the pellet had stopped forming.

    With his Soul Foresight Akata searched for the soul of the evolved Lunar Bear within the corpse. Between the time it had been killed and Akata had searched for the soul only about a few seconds had passed so the soul was still very much active. With but a thought he rotated the soul rune within his body and began to absorb the soul of the dead Lunar Bear. The soul rune happily took it in and refined it for Akata¡¯s use. Almost immediately white motes of light began to form and drift towards Akata¡¯s dantion region. The incomplete white pellet within his dantion region soon formed a vortex and began to suck in all of the white motes of light; slowly, it began to increase in size.

    The vortex grew larger as time went on and sucked in more of the white motes of light. The soul rune spun faster and refined the soul of the Lunar Bear. Akata watched as all of this happened. He didn¡¯t have to do a thing. His only role lay in finding the soul and initiating the process of absorbing it.

    As time went on, Akata could feel his strength slowly increasing. The white pellet within his dantion looked more like an egg as it floated in midair. The vortex that was absorbing it suddenly increased in size and the egg took in a bunch of the white motes at one time.

    Crack! The egg split open as a tiny worm-shaped being appeared. The worm-shaped being landed in the lake of the dantion region where it swum around and then settled at the bottom to start cultivating.With this, Akata now had his self image as the figure for his Mortal Realm cultivation base, a small sapling for his Plant Realm cultivation base, a bat winged creature for his Demon Realm cultivation base, and a worm-like sea beast for his Beast Realm cultivation base. It could be said that his cultivation bases were extremely diverse in appearance.

    Akata was instantly shocked in his heart but not too shocked. He had his guesses as to what that white pellet was but nonetheless when it happened he was still shocked. He already had three different cultivation bases and now he could add a fourth one to his list. He was much more familiar with this cultivation base than the Plant Realm and Demon Realm cultivation bases. This was a Beast Realm cultivation base.

    The vortex continued to spin as more white motes gathered into the worm-like beast in the lake of the dantion. The worm-like being grew slowly in size until the vortex slowed down rapidly and then disappeared. The worm-like being was still tiny, only about the size of the pinky of Akata¡¯s Mortal Realm cultivation base figure.

    ¡®Beast Realm cultivation base, and its at the 3rd Grade First Rank already.¡¯ Akata was extremely pleased. He was already formidable with two cultivation bases and when he got three he would easily surpass people of the same Rank. Now with four¡­ who knows what kind of strength he would have in the future.

    This wasn¡¯t the only thing Akata took note of while this process of gaining another cultivation base was occurring. Now that he had the ability of Soul Foresight, he could pay much more attention to his soul and find many small details that would¡¯ve been overlooked by him in the past. ¡®My soul is actually changing with each new cultivation base. Right now it is mostly a mortal soul but if any of my cultivation bases breaks through to the Second Rank before my Mortal Realm one then it will completely change my soul.¡¯ Akata sucked in a deep breath.

    His second strongest cultivation base was his Plant Realm one which was at the 7th Grade of the First Rank. If it surpassed the Mortal Realm cultivation base which was at the 8th Grade then nothing serious would come about. But if it broke through to the Second Rank before his Mortal Realm cultivation base did, then his entire soul would change in favor of his Plant Realm base. Akata didn¡¯t know what this implied but he definitely didn¡¯t want to find out.

    ¡®I have to make sure to break through the Second Rank with my Mortal Realm cultivation base before all my other bases.¡¯ Akata thought for a moment before another problem popped into his head. ¡®What will happen to my soul once I fuse my cultivation bases together? Will I still be considered human?¡¯ Akata inwardly shook his head before thinking, ¡®It doesn¡¯t matter, I¡¯m training to be a monster anyways.¡¯ With that, he went back to recovering his energy.

 Chapter 149: Forming a New Element

    Akata had spent a lot of energy to deal with the evolved Lunar Bear so he used the most time to recover. About an hour or so had passed when Akata finally recovered enough strength to carry on into the forest. He still let the group fight by themselves and wouldn¡¯t join in unless absolutely necessary. And when he did join in the battle would end within the next few moments. He was just too powerful of a person when compared to the rest of his group.

    Although Akata was mostly watching from the sides as his team fought, he wasn¡¯t just standing there. He was constantly using the Single Existence Art to combine different elements he had control over to create new abilities and discover new elements. So far he has only been able to combine the Inner Elements of Darkness and Light to improve his Shadowlight evasion art. With that he could now move fifty percent faster than before.

    What he really wanted to do was combine three or more elements together to see what that would create but it was proving a bit difficult to do. His comprehension in most elements were about on the same level so that wasn¡¯t the problem, but as he continued to try and fuse the elements it proved difficult to complete.

    ¡®What I¡¯m lacking the most in right now is long distance attacks. I don¡¯t really like fighting long distance so to make up for it I either need a skill that will make me much faster than even when I¡¯m using my Shadowlight evasion art or a skill that improves my defense to a whole new level. If I want speed I should combine fast moving elements such as lightning, light, or wind. For defense I should probably combine something that will bring forth a strong defense but will also allow me to move agilely. I have a lot more choices for this one, I could probably choose between the elements of metal, wood, clouds, curses, illusions, earth, water, wind, and then some.¡¯ Akata went into an extremely deep thinking process.

    He would cast runes or even switch to magic in order to test some things out, but overall, nothing seemed to be working. ¡®Runes are able to combine together to form bigger and stronger attacks; I saw the Scarlet Tigers constantly combining runes in order to attack. But runes take a while to be set up and can¡¯t be strengthened further or sustained indefinitely. That means it has to be a magic skill.¡¯ Akata shook his head.

    Runes were very different from magic skills. They could be casted by anyone, combined easier, and could be concealed for later effects. But, they also took a bit longer to cast and couldn¡¯t be strengthened after they were casted. This meant there was no way to further increase the power of a rune after it was made, and once all the power within it was used, it was seemingly useless. Magic on the other hand didn¡¯t have this issue. A magic practitioner could continuously pour in their energy into a magic skill to constantly boost its longevity or power.

    Although he was skilled in many things, magic wasn¡¯t really considered one of them. This was because Akata didn¡¯t like to use divine energy because his nature energy was much stronger. This can be seen by how he still struggles to use the basic power of Astral Obliteration, and even then it sometimes still doesn¡¯t work. Most of Akata¡¯s skills and abilities are either close combat skills or runic skills. Even his Shadowlight evasion art uses nature energy in order to operate it.

    Akata circulated his divine energy in an attempt to form elemental magic. ¡®To be agile and also have a strong defense something formless yet strong should work¡­ Something consisting of clouds, lightning, and vines. The clouds will allow me be formless and agile, the lightning will allow me move fast while also slowing anybody down who comes close to me, the vines will create a tensile strength that protects me but also allows me to move around well.¡¯ Akata formed the basis idea of his armor and then started to formulate how everything will come together.

    ¡®The clouds will be the foundation so as to serve as the last line of defense. With them I shall be able to move around freely and if it gets serious I can use the power of clouds to simply allow attacks to move through me.¡¯ Akata stood still with his eyes closed completely focused on making his magic armor. A cloudy aura soon formed around him.

    ¡®The lightning will form around the clouds and serve as the second line of defense in order to boost my speed and slow enemies down with a numbing effect. This should be seen as both offensive and defensive.¡¯ A layer of faint lightning formed within the cloudy aura around Akata. The nearby air trembled slightly, alerting the nearby disciples who were catching their breath from fighting.

    ¡°What¡¯s going on with Akata? What¡¯s with this aura around him?¡±

    ¡°He seems to be comprehending something important.¡±Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators!

    ¡°It looks to be incomplete but it¡¯s already so formidable.¡±

    Astonishment flashed across the various disciples faces that noticed a change in Akata¡¯s aura. They took note of it and kept their eyes on him but also stayed extremely vigilant. If Akata was making a breakthrough then it meant he was getting stronger. They didn¡¯t know what would be in the Central Circle so they had to let Akata become as strong as possible. They unconsciously put a defensive circle around Akata, protecting him from unknown dangers.

    Soon, others took note of what was happening and also took defensive postures around Akata¡¯s body. Akata¡¯s aura was continuously rising and notifying his team of his comprehension. Not only were his groupmates notified of the strong aura, so was the wildlife nearby.

    ¡°Awooo!¡±

    ¡°Gwar!¡±

    ¡°Swoosh!¡±

    Various sounds started to become clearer as they headed toward Akata. These creatures were extremely territorial and could tell that a strong presence was beginning to rise within their homes. They knew that this presence was at a critical point and so they rushed over to eliminate it as soon as possible before it became a threat to them.

    ¡°Everybody! Defend Akata as best you can!¡± Sumting Wong yelled out as the sounds of beasts came closer to the group. He punched out with a ball full of divine energy and aimed for a flying bird creature. This punch sent the bird creature flying back to where it came from. The spirits of the group rose abruptly and all of them had the will to fight vigorously. Soon magic, weapons, and skills were unleashed everywhere, lighting up the environment.

    Akata, who was deep within contemplation, had no idea what was going on. Time was oblivious to him at this moment and he had no idea that a huge fight had just broke out around him. As of this moment he was struggling to semi fuse the lightning aura with his cloud aura. He could only semi fuse it in order to be able to later semi fuse the vine aura in with the cloud and lightning aura. Once all of them were semi fused he could take the final step and fully fuse them all together. When that happened then he would have completely finished with using the Single Existence Art.

    The true use of the Single Existence Art wasn¡¯t to fully combine different things into one, it was to slowly infuse different things partially together to create a better understanding of them. Once that understanding of it reached a certain level then you would be able to fuse it fully with what you were trying to fuse it with. This allowed you to bring out the full power of what you were fusing together. Not only was it a skill to increase your power rapidly, but it also increased your comprehension abilities substantially.

    The fusing process of the Single Existence Art was very profound. It would take what you were trying to fuse and separate all that you knew about it and mix it up into a disordered mess. This disordered mess would then form a kind of aura around your figure that would have to be stabilised. To stabilise it, you would have to take the knowledge of what you were fusing and order it in a neat and tidy manner. This would deepen your knowledge further and in the process you would also comprehend a few more things. After the aura was condensed and stabilised you would then do the same thing for the other thing you were going to fuse together, the aura of the next thing would converge within the aura of the previous one and you would have to sort it out while it was mixed in with the previous stabilised aura. Because it was mixed in with the previous stabilised aura, the ¡°jumbled¡± insights that you had gained would want to find some order on its own, so it would group together with like things with the other aura.

    For instance, if you were trying to fuse the Inner Elements of Fire and Lava, you would condense one of those auras together. If you had condensed the fire aura together first, then all you would have to do is condense the lava aura next. The lava aura would be jumbled about within the condensed fire aura. Since the elements seek order on their own, they would already try to find order within the previously condensed aura. Because of this, the lava aura will find similar traits between it and the fire aura. The ¡°jumbled¡± lava aura would jumble around similar traits of the fire aura such as ¡°hot¡± and ¡°formless¡±. These traits will help the cultivator to realize the similarities between the things trying to be fused together and help to better fuse them. With this process, new insights will be formed and make it easier to fuse them.

    After all the things you were fusing together had a stabilised aura, you would then form a new aura that consisted of the similar traits between the things you were fusing together. This new aura would be jumbled as well and would have to be stabilised. Once it was stabilised then you would have to open a ¡°gate¡± with this new aura and connect it with the energy of either heaven or hell. The heavens will bless this new aura or hell will curse it. Once it was blessed or cursed the aura will form into an element that could be used by the cultivator.

    This was done because only something driven by the energy of heaven or hell could be used as an element. With this skill it was possible to discover new elements that you previously didn¡¯t know anything about or to outright create a whole new element. It was simply a heaven defying art!

    As of right now, Akata was in the middle of stabilising his lightning aura. Akata already had heaven defying comprehension abilities and lightning was originally formed within clouds so it was fairly simple to condense its aura. Akata soon finished condensing it and moved on to the most difficult of the parts, the Inner Element of Vines. This was the most different of the three elements so it would be much harder to order it within the two other auras of clouds and lightning. But Akata steadied himself and dove in head first in completing it.

    Meanwhile, a skeletal shaped creature took notice of the condensed cloud and lightning aura coming from the distance. He opened his eyes from his meditative state and looked off into the distance. ¡° A mere human is offsetting the energy of the heavens¡­ I shall pay him a visit.¡± He stood up slowly and as he did a boundless aura of life spread from his body and filled the surrounding area. The plants all around this creature seemed to approve of his aura and swayed. He took in a single breath and life energy flourished toward his bones, soon muscles and skin formed around his figure and made him look like a middle aged man. He swiped his hand and countless leaves stormed and surrounded his body giving him an attire made of leaves.

    He took a single step and soon vanished.

 Chapter 150: Sudden Appearances

    A cloudy aura filled with lightning energy surrounded akata¡¯s body. The power emanating from the two aura¡¯s was already a threatening presence to the surrounding beasts but gradually a more fearsome and terrifying aura was emerging from within the two as the vine aura was mixing in. The Inner Element of Vines wasn¡¯t remarkable by itself at all, but the strange combination of the Inner Elements of Clouds and Lightning seemed to bring out an existence of utter terror. Hints of green could be seen within the cloudy aura and vitality could be sensed within the lightning aura.

    As the vine aura emerged and strengthened, the beasts started to become more fierce and they fought relentlessly. The beasts were of varying strengths and they had different abilities that made it very troublesome for the group to fight back against them. Sumting Wong and Basik Bufmann were the two strongest people in the group besides Akata and therefore the two of them were the main defending force holding the beasts back. With them two, the group split into two groups, one that actively attacked the beasts and one that defended Akata from the attacks that managed to slip through the attacking group.

    Through the intense pressure of fighting multiple strong enemies, many people made sudden breakthroughs. Laim Oh, Ran Bow, Bur Gers, Fou Rest, etc. all made breakthroughs one after the other. It must be understood that they had long since reached bottlenecks and just needed a final trigger to push them forward. With Akata around they didn¡¯t truly need to push themselves too hard; but now that they truly couldn¡¯t rely on him, they had to fight with all they had.

    Bang! Boom! Bam! Attacks were unleashed one after the other as explosions rang out and the surrounding area was utterly thrashed. Although Akata¡¯s group was strong and made successive breakthroughs in cultivation, they didn¡¯t have an ounce of joy on their faces. The beasts were just as fearsome as them and they outnumbered them greatly. Slowly but surely the group kept getting pushed back, closer and closer to where Akata was.

    ¡°Argh!¡± A cultivator slashed at a beast with his claw arts and killed it, but just as soon as that happened two more powerful beasts sprang up and slashed at her. She barely dodged out of the way of a fatal blow but even then her leg was sliced open and a huge gash appeared. She fell to the ground ashened faced and couldn¡¯t move anywhere. The two beasts took this opportunity to pounce at her and finish her off. The girl was extremely fierce, as she laid on the ground unable to move out of the way she swung her claws at the beasts hoping to take on down with her.

    Swish! Swoosh! One beast was split into three pieces while the other one fell to the ground lifeless, it had been pierced in the heart. The girl stared at the unmoving beasts with astonishment, she wasn¡¯t the one who killed them. As she was attacking she clearly saw what happened, one beast had its body sliced apart by two beautiful sword waves, while another was ruthlessly stabbed by some kind of plant. What confused the girl was that the attacks didn¡¯t come from her group but from the surrounding area from opposite sides.

    The girl looked to her left and saw a beautiful lady standing on top of a huge black vine plant. The plant was exceptional as she could feel a huge amount of life energy emanating from it even from so far away. The vines on the plant whipped back and forth as if swaying with the wind and the girl that stood on top of it seemed as if she was one with nature, as if she was born from the very earth itself. Her white fur clothes contrasted greatly with her cold, black eyes and hair. Yet even then, her cold aura had a hint of an illusory feeling that made one feel as if she only existed in dreams.

    The girl then looked to her right and saw that two people in purple robes that looked just alike were standing there. The person with short black hair held a greatsword in both hands and he looked righteous and awe-inspiring. The greatsword was taller than his whole body, being 3 meters in height. The blade was completely golden in color with the hilt being silver. A golden aura radiated from this person¡¯s body as an overbearing feeling washed over the surroundings.

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    The person with long black hair also held a greatsword in both hands and he looked composed and tranquil. His aura gave one the feeling as if any kind of danger would be avoided if you were around him. His greatsword was completely silver in color with the hilt being golden and it was difficult to tell what material it was made out of. A silver aura washed off of this person¡¯s figure and it instantly made on feel refreshed and secure.

    ¡°Peizhi Xiuying! Cho Re! Sno Re!¡± The girl cried out in surprise at the sight of these three people. They all were top class disciples of the sect and each had the same potential as Akata. They were leaders of their own groups and from this, it could be seen what kind of strength they had.

    ¡°Blessed Night Tulip: Holy Moon Prayer.¡± Peizhi Xiuying put her hands together as in prayer and slowly pulled them apart, as she did a white tulip appeared between her palms. The tulip quickly started to grow and as it did she tossed it in the direction of the girl that was still laying down injured. The tulip stopped above the girls body and by then it was the size of her head. It took on a dark color and an aqua light emitted from it. Soon an aqua colored glow sprang up around the girl and her injured leg started to visibly heal. From afar it looked as if a black moon with aqua light shined on the girl and it brought one a celestial feeling yet one couldn¡¯t help but seem that it was slightly demonic.

    ¡°Heavenly Descent.¡± Both Cho Re and Sno Re spoke at the same time and as they did they raised the giant greatswords above their heads. They swung the greatswords down in the exact same manner but they released two different types of intents. Cho Re held the Goldensun Greatsword in his hands and he brought an overwhelming aura that seeked to annihilate everything in the vicinity. Anything that the light of that greatsword touched would be destroyed. Sno Re, on the other hand, held the Silvermoon Greatsword in his hands and he seemed to want to protect everything around him. Everywhere the silver light of his greatsword passed would be be protected and couldn¡¯t be harmed.

    The golden light descended from the sky and tore apart a nearby beast that was closing in on the girl and immediately killed it. The silver light descended from the sky and formed a barrier in front of the girl and protected her from a long range attack of a beast. The two techniques looked exactly the same but operated in different manners. The golden light seeked to attack and destroy while the silver light seeked to defend and protect. This was the result of what the twin brothers cultivated. The Paramita Energy Arts.

    The Paramita Energy Arts were exceptional to a great degree. They didn¡¯t focus on greatswords but instead on energy manipulation. The brothers had exceptional innate talent in manipulating energy and therefore they were given this technique in the Tower of Clouds. When Akata had went to the Tower of Clouds he was given a whole legacy but the two brothers were given a cultivation technique instead, that was because they had a special situation. The cultivation technique they were given wasn¡¯t exactly whole. It was actually split into two parts by the person who created it. One part was solely for defense and the other solely for offense. They were Fourth Rank techniques by themselves but if perfectly put together it was entirely capable of becoming a Fifth Rank technique.

    One could probably say that it would be a simple matter to put the two together and one would be right, however, to perfectly sync them and make them whole was a different matter. You would have to be able to perfectly understand the polar differences of the two techniques and then combine them to have them work together as if one. Otherwise, it would be as if you were just using two different techniques and the power of it would be significantly weaker.

    Sno Re controlled the Silvermoon Energy while Cho Re controlled the Goldensun Energy. These two energies were a part of a larger whole, Paramita Energy. However, Paramita Energy was impossible to control without a strong cultivation, otherwise one would self destruct from loss of control. That was why the person who created this technique sought to separate Paramita Energy into two separate ones. One for offense which was called Goldensun Energy and one for defense which was called Silvermoon Energy. Paramita was perfection and in order to better control and understand it the creator separated the Paramita Energy.

    Sno Re and Cho Re happened to be two sides of the same coin and therefore they could come together to truly perfect these differing techniques and bring them together. From this, it was easy to see how close they were.

    The three leaders sudden appearances shocked Akata¡¯s group. But asides from shock the group mostly felt boundless gratitude and excitement. They were struggling and constantly being pushed back but now back up had came. And it was in the form of three powerful disciples that had the strength to be leaders in the army!

    After the initial attacks from Peizhi Xiuying, Sno Re, and Cho Re, they didn¡¯t continue with their assault. Instead, they looked across the battlefield at the various and beasts. As they looked they could see that more and more beasts were coming to join in. The three couldn¡¯t help but smile. This was what war was going to be like so this was the perfect opportunity to showcase their leadership. They each raised their hands and behind them their groups appeared and rushed into the fray.

    Two new groups joined in the battle! Instantly, the scale of the battle between beasts and cultivators skyrocketed. It would surely become much more fierce.

 Chapter 151: Heaven and Hell Tribulation

    Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s group had 12 members in it at the beginning, and right now all 12 were present and in good health. It could be seen that in terms of keeping her team safe and well she was very adept. As her group rushed in to fight the beasts she gave orders clearly and precisely.

    ¡°Saint Pee, take the long range cultivators and tie down the flying beasts. Ra Mhen and Nu Dhuls you two are responsible for protecting them from close range attacks. Lil Mheet, take the close combat fighters and relieve some of the pressure off of Akata¡¯s group, circle the perimeter and try not to stay in one location for long. Penny, stand in the center and keep an eye on the battlefield, if you see someone about to die, quickly drag them back and out of harm''s way with your spectre abilities.¡±

    Peizhi Xiuying obviously knew her group well and employed their abilities in the best way possible. Her setup made it possible to bring out the most power and keep them all safe while doing so.

    ¡°Leemurs, make two clones and have them assist and communicate with Peizhi Xiuying and Akata when he wakes up. Squad 2, form a defensive perimeter around the long range combatants and keep them safe from unexpected attacks. Squad 3, take position in the center and setup a healing station for the injured, for those that can¡¯t make it back on their own then Jamiil and Peerless are responsible for getting them with their fast speeds. Squad 5, stake around the edges of the battlefield and gather any intel on some unusual changes to the flow of battle, that includes any absurdly powerful beasts or a change in their formation or tactics.¡± Sno Re, the defensive twin that wielded Silvermoon Energy, gave orders to his squads as well. He was extremely tactful and thought ahead instead of in the moment. It could be seen that he was very capable of holding down positions.

    ¡°Squad 1 join in the battle and face off against the long range ground beasts! Utterly annihilate them with your area of effect abilities. Squad 4 take up positions at the frontlines and fight the close combat beasts, I want you to tank the damage and give Akata¡¯s group a chance to catch their breaths. Squad 6, you¡¯re responsible for sneaking through the beast horde and killing off any unsuspecting beasts, make sure you¡¯re not noticed. Also flank them from the northeast, I want you to push them away from the Central Circle. Right now they have the numbers so anymore beasts wouldn¡¯t make much of a difference, but if strong beasts from the Central Circle joined then it would be problematic.¡± Cho Re, the offensive twin that wielded Goldensun Energy, gave his orders too. He was much more brash than the others but his tactics were well thought out and it could be seen that his leadership skills weren¡¯t inferior to the other two.

    Sno Re and Cho Re were combined into one group so they had plenty of people to work with. Due to so many people in their group and the fact that they shared a group they decided to form mini squads consisting of around 3 to four people that specialized in certain areas. Each of the twins controlled three squads.

    Sno Re¡¯s squads specialized in blocking, healing, and espionage. It could be seen from this that his defensive awareness was really put to the test with a setup like this. Cho Re¡¯s squads, on the other hand, specialized in AOE attacks, tanking, and assassinations. It was easy to see that Cho Re was gifted in all forms of offense and he knew them well enough to employ the best squad setup for his group.

    With the addition of Peizhi Xiuying, Sno Re, and Cho Re¡¯s groups, Akata¡¯s group felt much more at ease. The tension they felt fighting all of those beasts by themselves was truly driving them into despair. If they didn¡¯t believe in Akata¡¯s strength they would have been given up and left him for dead.

    The vine aura slowly condensed within the other two auras. The cloud and lightning aura were already fully condensed and only the vine aura was left. As it further stabilised Akata found new insights into the Inner Elements of Vines. Flexible, thick, vast, all these traits and more were applied to the three elements as they were grouped as one. These traits formed a new aura around Akata and this aura brought a fear inducing feeling to every living being close by.

    ¡°Wha¡­ What is thata aura coming from Akata?¡± Peizhi Xiuying couldn¡¯t help but sweat when she felt that aura. It was as if a heavenly pressure was weighing down on her, it was simply something that she couldn¡¯t possibly go against.Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work!

    Not to mention her, who was at the 8th Grade of the First Rank, but the twins who were at the 7th Grade felt that way too.

    Fwoosh! Bzzz! Pop! The sounds of clouds flowing, lightning zipping, and vines snapping could be heard across the whole battlefield at this moment. A dangerous feeling arose within the hearts of everyone present. They couldn¡¯t help but take one step away from Akata¡¯s body.

    Rumble! Crack! Dark clouds formed in the sky and lightning could be seen crackling within. Along with the changes in the sky the ground underneath Akata started to crack as lava could be seen within. However, whether it be the lightning in the sky or the lava in the ground, none of it was normal. The lightning was completely golden in color and the lava was a dark black. The lightning felt righteous while the lava felt ominous.

    At the same time this was occuring Akata opened his eyes abruptly and his gaze seemed to be misty, sharp, and full of vitality. He looked up at the heavenly lightning and then looked down at the hellish lava. He was not afraid but rather expectant. ¡°Just one more step and I can finally form this new element.¡± A fierce battle intent formed around his body as he was ready to face this tribulation head on.

    He had already taken notice of Peizhi Xiuying and the twins but at this moment his main attention was on the heavenly lightning in the sky and the hellish lava in the ground. If he succeeded in withstanding these two powers then his element would gain the approval of one and be truly formed. If he couldn¡¯t withstand them, then not only would his element not form, he would also suffer grievous injuries to his cultivation and may never advance again. He may even well die.

    Even though Akata knew these things he was not scared at all. He suddenly laughed out loud and spoke with a clear voice, ¡°Come at me! I will walk atop hell and fly through the heavens! Nothing will impede me as I rise.¡± As he finished speaking a bolt of golden lightning fell from the sky struck Akata. At the same time, a pillar of black lava shot from the ground and engulfed his figure.

    Beasts and cultivators alike were instantly shocked by this scene. They could feel the terrifying power from both the lightning and lava, yet they both attacked Akata at the same time? There was no possible way that he could withstand something as terrifying as this. But what happened next was surely to surprise them.

    ¡°Ah!¡± A loud roar came from the pillar of lava and all of a sudden a boom sent the lava flying away. Akata stood there unharmed, neither the lava nor the lightning injured him. He gave a snort, ¡°That was nothing, is that all you have?¡± Akata looked up and down at the sky and ground with a look of disdain on his face. Clearly, the lightning and lava wasn¡¯t nearly strong enough to hurt him.

    However, seeming to be enraged by Akata¡¯s remarks, the clouds turned to a golden color and the earth beneath Akata¡¯s feet turned black. All of a sudden three bolts of golden lightning and three pillars of black lava shot towards Akata from three different directions.

    Bang! Bang! Bang! Akata was hit from six different sides and was engulfed in the wrath of heaven and hell. In truth, Akata already had passed the tribulation from the first bolt of lightning and pillar of lava. When it hit him then energy from both flowed into his new elemental aura and nourished it. If the aura couldn¡¯t withstand the energy then it would be overwhelmed and explode, leaving Akata to fend for himself from the might of the heavens and hell. The only reason the tribulation kept on attacking was because Akata¡¯s intent asked for it. The more energy Akata¡¯s new element could take in the more powerful it would become. But if he overestimated himself then he would surely die a horrible death.

    Akata could feel his new elemental aura cracking under the pressure of the lightning and lava. He knew that the pressure was going to increase but he didn¡¯t think it was going to be by so much. It was at least 9 times greater than the first one! That was an insane increase in might. Akata let out a yell of might and his eyes turned bloodshot. He forcefully poured in his own energy to sustain his elemental aura and repair the cracks.

    ¡®I will not let this thing kill me now! I will hold on, even if I have to use my own strength!¡¯ Akata could tell by now that his elemental aura wouldn¡¯t be enough to hold back the lightning and lava and that he needed to do something else in order to keep it from being destroyed.

    Akata looked fierce and bewildered. The energy of heaven and hell seeped in through the cracks and, even though it was really miniscule, it was enough to tear off Akata¡¯s skin and lacerate his body. Akata gave another roar and he rotated his crimson and golden rune vigorously. All of a sudden a vortex appeared within his body that took in the small amount of energy that seeped through the cracks.

    Boom! Boom! Boom! Banging resounded out but it wasn¡¯t from Akata getting harmed but from repeated breakthroughs in cultivation! His rune was absorbing and refining the energy of heaven and hell after all.

    Mortal Realm Mortal Rank Grade 9. Plant Realm Seed Rank Grade 9. Demon Realm Imp Rank Grade 5. Beast Realm Docile Rank Grade 6.

    In a short amount of time Akata went to the peak of the Mortal and Plant Realm. His Demon and Beast Realm cultivations also went up by 5 Grades. Even with this insane increase in power, it still wasn¡¯t close enough for Akata to even begin to struggle free from the pressure of the lightning and lava.

 Chapter 152: Heaven and Hell Tribulation (2)

    Akata was becoming desperate. He couldn¡¯t hold on much longer. If he didn¡¯t find a way to repair the damage to his elemental aura then it would explode and all the pressure from the heavenly lightning and hellish lava would engulf him, destroying him in mind, body, and soul.

    Akata kept on rotating his crimson rune but he knew that he was creating an even more dangerous situation. All of these breakthroughs would make his foundation extremely unstable and he could very well explode from the inside. But if he didn¡¯t do this then then pressure that seeped in through the cracks of his elemental aura would destroy him from the outside.

    Demon Realm Imp Rank Grade 6¡­ Grade 7

    Beast Realm Docile Rank Grade 7¡­ Grade 8

    Akata held on through gritted teeth and forcefully endured the bloated feeling in his body.

    As if things couldn¡¯t get any worse a report came back to Sno Re. After the report came in, his face instantly became pale and unsightly. ¡°Shit! This had to happen right now?!¡± He quickly told Leemurs to relay the message to the others.

    Leemurs had the special ability to create a few clones that acted independently from his main body but shared the same thoughts and experiences. If one clone was told something then the others would know the information as well. It was extremely useful in relaying messages quickly,

    ¡°Peizhi Xiuying, Sno Re told me to report to you that the beast horde has had a change in formation and seem to be organizing themselves. This is due to a strong creature commanding them. This creature should be on their way over here as I speak. Sno Re has asked if you could help fight this-¡±

    Boom! Before Leemurs could finish everything he had to say a boom resounded nearby. Dust and earth exploded into the air as a figure landed on the ground. A huge smoke cloud appeared and obscured the vision of several cultivators.

    ¡°Cough cough¡­ what was that-¡± The cultivator that was nearby and just speaking abruptly found out that the world was tilting to the side and the ground was getting closer. He didn¡¯t have a chance to figure out what was going on before he died. His head was cut off.

    Before his head hit the ground a hand suddenly reached out from the smoke cloud and grabbed it. The head was pulled back into the clouds and soon afterwards a crunching sound could be heard. It was silent to begin with so the sounds of crunching were especially easy to hear.

    Everyone couldn¡¯t help but shudder and fear swelled up into their minds. Even the beasts couldn¡¯t help but shiver in fear towards this almighty figure.

    ¡°Ahhh¡­ It¡¯s been a long time since I¡¯ve tasted human before. It is still rich and very lovely.¡± A sweet voice resounded in the ears of everyone. Although this voice was the most pleasant thing any has ever heard, the words that came from the voice completely altered people''s perception. It felt conflicting and made everyone think of what kind of terrifying existence could be hidden within that dust cloud.

    It was dead silent and nobody thought to move a single face muscle, let alone their bodies. The dust slowly settled to the ground and the appearance of the creature slowly came into the view of everyone. What shocked them even more was the appearance of this figure.

    This figure looked exactly like a middle aged man, the only thing that distinguished him from looking like a human¡­ was the fact that he was only a few inches tall! Not only that but he had translucent wings that glittered in the sunlight and fluttered brilliantly. With every flap of his wings, motes of light would fall off as if he was shedding off his heavenly charm. Even though he looked middle aged he was still extremely handsome. Along with his purple hair and pointy ears, it could be said that he stood out.

    ¡°A¡­ A¡­ A fairy? I didn¡¯t think that they existed. I thought they were mere legends.¡± A cultivator whose mind had gone totally blank said all of a sudden.

    Every cultivator present was shocked into speechlessness not just from his appearance but also from his actions and words. Clearly, he was a madman that like to eat humans. And from his sudden actions it could be seen that he had plenty of strength.

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    Whoosh! Whip! Swish! Three attacks suddenly launched themselves toward the flying mini person out of nowhere. Cho Re attacked with his Goldsun Greatsword, Sno Re attacked with a Silvermoon Longstaff, and Peizhi Xiuying attacked with her Grand Life Vine. These three were top disciples and they attacked in sync and unexpectedly. Anyone under the Earthly Rank would be seriously injured by this combined attack, if not dead.

    The fairy swept his gaze across the incoming attacks and harrumphed. He swiped his hand through the air as countless leaves appeared out of nowhere. The leaves fluttered in the wind and didn¡¯t even seem capable of blocking a fly from passing by, but when the attacks touched the leaves they simply were absorbed as if they were water. The leaves on the other hand grew a bit bigger.

    ¡°I don¡¯t have time for these tricks!¡± The fairy swept his gaze across the battlefield and quickly located his target. With a swoosh he flew with incomprehensible speed toward the place where lava was gushing out and lightning was striking. Obviously his target was Akata.

    Fwoosh! He flew straight towards Akata but before he could get halfway, a black vine tendril rose from the ground right in front of the pillar of lava. The tendril quickly thickened and a white flower bud appeared then bloomed. Within the flower was a beautiful girl but her face right at this moment was extremely cold. It was none other than Peizhi Xiuying.

    ¡°You¡¯re not touching Akata.¡± She said coldly. She swiped her arm across the air and all of a sudden black tendrils shot out from the ground and toward the fairy. Making an incantation gesture, white flower buds appeared on the black tendrils in shocking fashion and then bloomed. There were lilies, roses, dandelions, lotuses, tulips, etc. Many different types of plants appeared on the vine tendril.

    ¡°Humph. Measly plant cultivator.¡± The fairy simply flew past the tendrils that were flying towards its body and seeked to head straight for Akata. He wished for nothing save to destroy him. How could Peizhi Xiuying fight somebody that completely ignored her?

    Whoosh! In the blink of an eye the fairy vanished and then reappeared behind Peizhi Xiuying and right in front of the lava pillar. He stretched out his hand and then pointed toward the pillar. Boundless pressure exploded out and added onto the pressure of the lava and lightning, making it much more difficult for Akata to hold on.

    Although the fairy was strong, he wasn¡¯t strong enough to go against a tribulation that came from heaven and hell. He couldn¡¯t go against it and destroy Akata, otherwise he would be destroyed too. All he could do was send his pressure over and obstruct Akata a bit more.

    With that, the fairy stopped there and waved his other hand, setting up a defensive barrier to block out the others and protect himself from attacks. Although he could ignore the attacks of these people, he didn¡¯t feel like being annoyed.

    Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s face became icy cold and her anger rose to another level. She unleashed devastating attacks one after the other in an attempt to drive the fairy away. Sno Re and Cho Re did the same, along with any others who were free from fighting the beasts, but it was all for naught. Nothing they did was capable of breaking the barrier of the fairy.

    Akata was still within the pillar of lava of being blasted by lightning when all of a sudden more pressure flooded in. This pressure was obviously different than the pressure of heaven and hell and Akata instantly knew what it was.

    ¡®Pressure from the Second Rank? Someone must be trying to kill me as I try to face this tribulation.¡¯ Akata became extremely calm as he thought this. Right now he could do nothing save for pass this tribulation. He couldn¡¯t fight back against the person attempting to worsen his situation so all he could do was pass and break free.

    ¡®Heaven and hell already wants to obstruct and test me, so what gives this person the right to do so as well? All this pressure is to see if I¡¯m strong enough just to gain acknowledgement of heaven and hell and use their power for myself. Fuck their power, I want to use my own power to become stronger. I don¡¯t need the power of heaven or hell to reach the pinnacle. All they do is test the weak as if they¡¯re the strongest force. I don¡¯t need their permission to grow strong, all I need is myself!¡¯

    Akata suddenly came to a new understanding once that new pressure came in. He didn¡¯t want to use the power of heaven or hell to grow stronger. They wanted to test his strength to see if he was worthy of their use so what right did they have to help him? He didn¡¯t want their help any longer so he fully outright rejected it.

    With this new ideology in mind Akata didn¡¯t seek to try and integrate with the power of heaven or hell and instead used his own energy to support his element. He used his mental energy, divine energy, body energy, any energy that was all his he used to support his own elemental aura. Since he wasn¡¯t seeking the aid of heaven or hell to support his new element then there was no longer a need for the tribulation. It slowly died down and along with it so did the pressure.

    The golden lightning and clouds retracted and went back to heaven. The black lava sank back into the earth and went back to hell. The pressure from both went away and the tribulation was over with. The only pressure that remained was the one from the fairy.

    ¡°Eh? He succeeded anyways?¡± The fairy was instantly confused. Just about as soon as he applied his pressure the tribulation ended, yet Akata was still standing there, perfectly fine.

    The elemental aura on Akata condensed further as he used his own energy to form his new element. Although it would be weaker now than if he finished the tribulation with the energy of heaven or hell, in the future there would be no limit to the power it could unleash. As strong as he could become that would be as strong as his new element could become.

    At first Akata didn¡¯t think that using his own energy would work but he soon found out that his crimson rune seemed to pour part of his soul into it and helped him further nourish his new element. The terrifying aura slowly built as he soon fully constructed it.

    The new element took on a misty look that flickered with sparks and was full of vitality. Without the energy of heaven or hell it looked translucent. If it was blessed it would be golden, if it was cursed it would be actually be azure. Now that it didn¡¯t have either it was transparent, or at least it would be. Backed by the power of the crimson rune the new element took on a crimson glow. It actually looked similar to when Akata used the Red Cloud Formation.

    Everyone looked at Akata who had his eyes closed and they could feel the terrifying aura emanating from him. One look and they could tell that whatever mist surrounded Akata at this moment was extremely formidable. They didn¡¯t dare to approach it.

    ¡°Humph!¡± Seeing the tribulation disappear and Akata still surviving, the fairy no longer cared about heaven or hell obstructing him. He gave a cold snort and waved his hand in Akata¡¯s direction, hoping to deal a fatal blow.

    Akata opened his eyes and within could be seen calmness that didn¡¯t match his age. It was an extreme sense of calm that told whoever looked within his gaze that he shouldn¡¯t be messed with. ¡°You can die now.¡± He spoke slowly.

 Chapter 153: Facing the Fairy

    Akata opened his eyes and within could be seen calmness that didn¡¯t match his age. It was an extreme sense of calm that told whoever looked within his gaze that he shouldn¡¯t be messed with. ¡°You can die now.¡± He spoke slowly.

    ¡°Wha¡­ What did you just do?!¡± Noluck was instantly shocked by Akata¡¯s actions. After the pressure from the Second Rank foe appeared he was sure that Akata was going to fail and die. But, not only did he live, he even did something that completely bewildered him to stop the tribulation¡­ he rejected the help of heaven and hell! What kind of concept was that? Heaven and hell were what provided guidance to cultivators, to reject their help meant that Akata was basically going solo on cultivation. He would have to work many times harder to raise his strength and there was no going back.

    Akata¡¯s face was calm and he spoke indifferently. ¡°I¡¯m just using my own power to become strong.¡± After he said that, Akata immediately brought his full attention to the outside world and waved his hand. A scythe appeared and he swiped out toward the fairy that was flying in front of him.

    The fairy was shocked but he was still an existence that reached the Second Rank so he wasn¡¯t scared at all facing Akata¡¯s attack. He waved his hand as boundless power pushed aside the scythe and struck towards Akata. ¡°No. You can die.¡± The fairy spoke.

    Akata turned into a black light and vanished from the spot in an instant. He reappeared a few meters back and out of the attack range.

    Boom!

    In his place where he was just standing was a huge crater. At first there was nothing save for soil and dirt in the crater but almost immediately afterwards plants and flowers started to sprout within. Countless leaves appeared and blanketed over the plants and filled the crater up.

    ¡®He seems to have great control over the Inner Element of Leaves and the Outer Elements of Life and Yang.¡¯ Akata thought to himself as he saw the plants growing from the crater. Akata had a much deeper understanding of elements since he just created his own. He was more attuned to how they functioned and what energies they interacted with. With a glance he could tell what elements this fairy was proficient in.

    ¡®Inner Element of Leaves. Outer Elements of Life and Yang. Cultivation at the Second Rank. And a fairy. This creature has many secrets. Coupled with the fact that he lives within Misty Forest, I can¡¯t take him lightly at all otherwise we¡¯ll all die.¡¯ Akata thought to himself.

    Whoosh! Before Akata could think about attacking the fairy, a black vine tendril that looked to be made of metal shot towards it. Not only that but two streaks of golden sword lights and a silver arrow shot toward the fairy as well. The three attacks were filled with top class might that could threaten those at the peak of the First Rank when combined.

    Clank. Clank. Clank. The fairy waved its hand as a leaf filled with boundless life appeared and wrapped around it. The metallic vine, the sword streaks, and the arrow all bounced off of the leaf and left no damage to the fairy.

    ¡°Trifling humans! I¡¯m a fairy with a cultivation at the 1st Grade of the Sprite Rank! That¡¯s equivalent to what you humans call the Earthly Rank, you aren¡¯t worthy of going against me. I¡¯m going to slaughter you all and eat you to strengthen myself. If it wasn¡¯t for this brat disturbing the heavenly energy in the surroundings I would¡¯ve just left you all alone. Who am I kidding, I would¡¯ve picked a few of you up for a light snack later on, hehe.¡±

    The fairy seemed to be crazed for the taste of human flesh and blood. There was good reason too. Some species of fairies were unique in that they could strengthen themselves with blood. They especially found human blood rich with nutrients and it was an absolute delicacy for them. Because most fairies didn¡¯t like to be disturbed and loved loneliness, they kept their distance from cultivators who would often hunt them down for their wings and other valuable treasures. But for some crazed and evil fairies, to satisfy their cravings and hunger, they would hide out in mortal cities and feed off of them. The mortals, in turn, came to call these creatures vampires.

    Not all fairies were bloodsucking creatures, however. Some were kind and benevolent and sought to rid the mortal cities of the evil fairies, they were known as vampire hunters. Those that loved all life and brought blessings came to be known as gods and goddesses. In any case, fairies were actually not as rare as one might think. But to humans they were a rare creature. At first they thought all fairies were benevolent but seeing this one in front of their eyes, the group had a whole new understanding.

    The cultivators could see that this fairy was a deranged maniac that was looking to kill and eat them. It might have came for Akata at first, but now it was out to get them all. Most of them were too weak to even think about facing this creature. The only ones who barely had a chance were the leaders of the groups. So while the groups were fighting the beast horde the leaders would fight the fairy.This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source.

    ¡°Basik Bufmann lead half of the group in fighting the beasts, cooperate with the other groups in establishing control of the situation. Sumting Wong take the two best long range fighters and help with the flying beasts. Bur Gers use your healing abilities to treat the injured. Laim Oh lead the rest in flanking the beasts away from the Central Circle.¡± Akata quickly gave orders to his group. Before they were just fighting randomly with the others but now that they had some order the beasts could only fall back due to the cooperation of the cultivators.

    ¡°Peizhi Xiuying, Cho Re, Sno Re¡­ And Fang Zuwa please help me take care of this bastard.¡± Akata spoke calmly. Peizhi Xiuying, Sno Re, and Cho Re acknowledged but then looked confused. They were wondering why Akata had called out Fang Zuwa¡­ unless.

    Just as they were thinking a gray robed figure flashed out of the forest and appeared beside some beasts. With a flash of his hand a fog appeared around those beasts and soon their flesh was devoured and they died a soundless death. It was none other than Fang Zuwa! A group of people appeared behind him and he quickly gave them orders to assist everyone as he made his way to where the fairy was. Surprisingly¡­ he had broken through to the 8th Grade! He was just at the 7th Grade a few days ago.

    ¡°Mn.¡± Fang Zuwa nodded his head. He was already close by just like Peizhi Xiuying and Cho Re and Sno Re¡¯s groups were but he was a bit farther. It took him a while to get into range to notice that a large battle was going on. As soon as he did he felt terrifying auras and strength that matched the Earthly Rank. He decided to lend help if he could but if not he was going to slip away. After hearing the words of the fairy, however, he knew that if he ran away he would still be targeted. It would be better to stand as a group and have a chance than to be by himself.

    The five leaders grouped up together and stood side by side as they looked at the fairy in front of them. Akata stood in the center as everyone felt that his aura was terrifying and they concluded that he had the most strength out of all of them.

    The fairy let them group up, because as he saw it, even if all of them teamed up they couldn¡¯t stand up to his power. ¡°Gather as many as you want, you¡¯ll all eventually become my strength.¡± The fairy snickered as he gazed across the five of them.

    ¡°Heh.¡± Akata actually gave a slight chuckle which instantly off setted the solemn atmosphere. The leaders looked at him and so did the fairy. ¡°You may think we¡¯re normal¡­ but all of us were trained to be monsters.¡±

    ¡°What do you mean?¡± the fairy originally didn¡¯t put them in his eyes but from Akata¡¯s eerily calm demeanor and strange words it couldn¡¯t help but have a weird feeling deep down.

    Akata didn¡¯t answer as he swung his scythe toward the fairy. He executed the straightforward and fast move of the World Omen, Guillotine Slice. He aimed straight for the neck of the fairy and attacked without warning. Akata liked to attack straightforwardly without any tricks. This was how he killed in the trials.

    Seeing Akata attack the others obviously didn¡¯t stand there any longer. Cho Re was the most explosive combatant as he held his hand out and Goldsun Energy appeared and formed a mighty warhammer which he swung out. He was overbearing and straight forward as well. Clearly, he liked to straight power to fight his opponents.

    Sno Re summoned forth his Silvermoon Energy and created a longbow in his hands. He pulled back the string and instantly a few arrows appeared within his grasp. Releasing the string the arrows flew straight toward the fairies vital parts.

    Fang Zuwa raised his palm toward the fairy as a dense ball made of gray fog appeared in front of it. ¡°Mental Abrasion.¡± He spoke as the ball of fog shot toward the fairy in a smoky fashion. Feeling the aura of the ball, the leaders couldn¡¯t help but feel apprehensive in their hearts. Just looking at it made them feel as if their mental world was eroding.

    Peizhi Xiuying opened her hand as a white Demonic Spirit Poppy appeared within. It bloomed and instantly an aura of illusions sprang out and filled the area. Her fingers twitched and the white flower was soon overcome by darkness as if turned completely black. The illusion aura became tens of times stronger as a result. ¡°Illusions Field.¡± She spoke coldly and she threw the flower toward the fairy.

    Five strong attacks from five of the top disciples in the sect were launched at one person. This kind of strength would be enough to eradicate anyone under the Second Rank. It even had the strength to injure those at the Second Rank.

    The fairy watched as the attacks came toward its body. It let out a roar as its body suddenly grew to the size of an average adult male. The wings on his back stopped fluttering and he stood there watching the attacks come.

    Akata¡¯s attack was the fastest and it was the first one that was unleashed. The fairy raised its hand toward the scythe light and a green ball of energy appeared within its palm. The green light transformed into a single leaf which rapidly expanded. The leaf rolled itself up an looked more like a sword in the fairy¡¯s hand. With a swipe, boundless energy of life and yang exploded and broke apart the scythe light.

    Boom! The scythe light exploded, not even getting close to the fairy. The fairy grabbed the leaf sword with two hands and raised it above his head. He then rapidly swung down and a streak of sword light arced out toward the warhammer.

    Bang! The Goldsun Warhammer was pushed back with minimal effort and Cho Re was flung back. The fairy switched back to one hand as the leaf sword seemed to become translucent and ghostly. The arrows flying towards it soon fell to the ground before they could get too close. All of them were sliced in half from the arrowhead to the tail.

    Not even looking, the fairy raised his hand toward the ball of fog heading its way as a green ball of energy formed in his other hand. The green ball transformed into a giant leaf which floated in front of his palm and waited for the ball of gas. Once it approached the leaf wrapped up the ball of gas. The fairy closed his hand into the shape of a fist and the leaf squeezed the ball of fog until it dispersed and broke apart into nothingness.

    The now wrapped up leaf ball was then thrown into the air where it collided with the Demonic Spirit Poppy. The fairy slashed its leaf sword once more toward the leaf ball where it exploded and destroyed the black flower into bits and pieces.

    ¡°Is that all you monsters have?¡± The fairy spoke and dense disdain could be seen on his face. He gave a cold snort and looked at the humans he thought were worthless existences. ¡°My turn.¡±

 Chapter 154: Five Monsters

    The fairy gave a grunt as its body flashed toward Akata who was standing at the center of the leaders. He raised his leaf sword and stabbed straight for Akata¡¯s throat. It could be seen that he was a decisive fighter as well.

    Akata didn¡¯t panic in the slightest as he prepared to receive the fairy¡¯s attack. He raised his scythe and used it to block the attack. The area around Akata started to vibrate as a violet light sprang up from the scythe. The crimson mark on the scythe started to glow and an intense power rose up in the surroundings. Khaotic Diffusion Lock!

    The fairy felt as if his attack was dramatically weakened all of a sudden. It didn¡¯t seem like the area he was in was under his control and it felt like someone else was the master of this region. His eyes locked onto the violet glow on the scythe and his face couldn¡¯t help but change. ¡®Is he controlling some supreme element?¡¯ He couldn¡¯t help but think to himself.

    Bang! The leaf sword collided with the Bludhaven Scythe and the results weren¡¯t what others were expecting. Akata held the leaf sword back with his scythe with difficulty. This shocked the others to a large extent. Akata actually blocked a head on strike against a Second Rank cultivator and didn¡¯t get pushed back! What did this mean? It meant that Akata could actually go against a Second Rank cultivator with his own strength while he was only in the First Rank¡­ and not even at the peak.

    Akata was already capable of fighting those at the Halfstep Second Rank before, and now that he had tremendous breakthroughs in all of his cultivation bases he was obviously much stronger. But the difference between Halfstep Second Rank and the Second Rank were like difference between heaven and hell. Although Akata was close in strength he still had a ways to go before he could truly battle them. From this it could be seen how much strength going from the First Rank to the Second Rank granted. It was simply unimaginable.

    Seeing that he couldn¡¯t totally battle the Second Rank yet and that he was still being suppressed, Akata didn¡¯t become discouraged but instead a yearning appeared within his heart. He longed for the day that he could step into the Second Rank. How powerful would he become then?

    A black flame with a crimson outline appeared on the hands on Akata. With a thought the flames spread to cover his scythe and they were seeking to burn the leaf sword and the fairy.

    ¡°Humph!¡± The fairy snorted and put some more pressure on Akata. A green glint appeared in his eyes as a giant leaf appeared above his head. The leaf swept out, creating a strong wind that pushed Akata back.

    The fairy then changed targets and went for the support of the group, Peizhi Xiuying. He could tell at a glance that she could heal others by the way she stood behind them and controlled plants, even if she couldn''t heal she was the support for the group, and if he looked to win a quick fight then he would have to take her out. ¡°You can die first!¡± Akata was a bit weird and strange but the fairy figured that the others were much more normal in comparison.

    The giant leaf in the sky waved again generating a huge gust of wind that pushed the others back. He didn¡¯t want them to obstruct his goal in killing Peizhi Xiuying. From this, Akata could tell that the fairy was very meticulous and cautious. It was going to be very hard to kill this person.

    ¡°Peizhi Xiuying¡­ and everyone else for that matter! Now is not the time to hold back our strength or our hidden tricks. We have to kill this person with all we¡¯ve got otherwise none of us will survive!¡± Akata yelled out as soon as he was pushed back and saw the fairy glance at Peizhi Xiuying. He could tell that the fairy was going to change targets and his most optimal choice would be the healer of the group. Therefore he told everyone to not hold anything back. Even if their secrets were exposed it would be better than dying.

    Peizhi Xiuying knew what Akata said was right so she took a deep breath and no longer held back her strength. Her aura immediately became much colder as her Grand Life Vine merged into her body. Gradually her skin became black and a strong yin energy suffused from her body.

    ¡°Yinbloom Form.¡±

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    Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s skin became pitch black as a huge amount of yin energy washed over her body. Her eyes and hair turned into a forest green as a boundless life energy filled every part of them. A black vine tendril wrapped around each of her arms and along those tendrils many white flower buds could be seen sprouting. Her clothes shredded from the sudden pressure but in its place a giant black flower petal appeared on her body in the form of a dress. She truly looked like a plant goddess at this moment.

    Whether it was Fang Zuwa, Sno Re, Cho Re, Akata, or even the fairy, all of them were surprised at her transformation at this moment. Even though Akata had already seen it before, it still awed him just how marvelous this skill was. She was basically changing into a whole different race of beings.

    Shock and bewilderment filled the fairy as he saw the Peizhi Xiuying change her form. If it was just her form that changed then it wouldn''t matter much, but her whole aura and strength greatly differed from her previous self. If before she was considered a sprouting bud then now she would be an ancient evil plant that was filled with life and yin energy. There was no comparison between the two.

    It might have seen like a lot of time passed but in reality the Yinbloom Form only took an instant to change into. Before the fairy could draw too close, Peizhi Xiuying had already transformed and was preparing to launch her assault. :Fourth Petal Transformation: Yin Mist.¡± A meter long black petal appeared above Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s head and began to crack. As it cracked endless amounts of a black mist started seeping out of it. The mist covered everything in the surrounding area and soon Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s figure disappeared within.

    Whoosh! Although the fairy saw all of this happening right in front of him he didn¡¯t slow down in the least. He kept straight and swung at the spot Peizhi Xiuying was just at. To his surprise, however, he hit nothing but air. Shock filled his face and gloom soon took over his features.

    ¡®She was just here a breath ago, there¡¯s no way she can move that fast. These kids are utterly weak but their skills are top class. All of their skills are profound and it¡¯s going to be a lot of trouble if I want to kill them. I thought that only that kid with the crimson eyes was a freak but from his words everyone of them is a monster.¡¯

    The fairy didn¡¯t immediately start attacking again and he slowly turned his head to look at the group of leaders. His eye twitched when he saw Peizhi Xiuying standing calmly side by side with the rest of them.

    ¡®It seems she can move about freely within this mist. I¡¯ll have to find some way to get rid of it so that I can kill her.¡¯ The fairy thought to himself. He swept his gaze across the children and harrumphed.

    Cho Re, Sno Re, and Fang Zuwa looked at Peizhi Xiuying briefly when she appeared beside them. They were all qualified leaders and therefore their actions and thoughts could be seen as top class within the sect. After a second of hesitating they finally decided to get serious and unleash their full power.

    ¡°Heh. I¡¯ve been waiting on a worthy opponent to test my skills on.¡± Fang Zuwa stepped forward and as he did, dense gray fog surrounded his body. Just looking at the fog made one¡¯s mind feel as if it were being slowly eaten away like a leech constantly attacking it. ¡®My Mental Corrosion Fog Tome that I train in is perfect for prolonged battles as it breaks the mind and eats away at the opponents mental energy. Their will to do anything will slowly but surely be taken away in front of me.¡¯ He thought to himself. The gray fog suddenly spread out and mixed in with the black mist. Fang Zuwa¡¯s figure slowly turned into fog as he took on a more ghostly form.

    Seeing as Fang Zuwa was going all out how could the Re brothers not? They both stepped forward and flashed an incantation gesture. Golden light sprang up on Cho Re¡¯s body while silver light emanated from Sno Re¡¯s body.

    ¡°Divine Paramita Body.¡±

    Boundless silver and golden light sprang up in the area and it made it very difficult to see what was going on. Along with the light two intense energies sprang up and brought a huge pressure upon everything near the twins.

    Whether it was the long haired Sno Re or the short haired Cho Re, both of them went tremendous changes. One had their eyes and hair turn silver while the others turned gold, Their hands went into a prayer gesture and soon another pair of arms sprouted from under their previous ones. Their necks seemed to grow and to the surprise of everyone another head was forming for each of the twins. The light surrounding them twirled endlessly and transformed their clothes into silver and gold light armor.

    This was the Divine Paramita Body technique. It granted the user a supreme and divine body fit for a deity. The complete technique allowed for the user to have six arms and three heads and be clad in heavy armor, but since the twins weren¡¯t at the level yet they could only have four arms and two heads and wear light armor. The technique allowed for their bodies to grow up to five meters and as they became more proficient they could grow much more taller than that.

    The light dimmed down and the twins stood there with imposing auras. On wore silver light armor and the other wore golden light armor. They each had four arms and two head and were five meters tall.

    The five leaders stood side by side. Fang Zuwa in his ghostly form gave an aura of corrosion and the fairy felt his mind slowly churning. The twins gave the fairy a feeling that they were supreme beings and gave off an intense pressure that weighed down on him. Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s Yin aura made the surroundings feel cold and made him feel trapped. And Akata, while the only one who still looked the same, subtly gave him the worst feeling out of them all.

    Looking left and right Akata could feel the imposing auras from the people beside him. He then looked straight at the fairy and couldn¡¯t help but lightly smile. ¡°I can¡¯t let you all upstage me.¡± He closed his eyes and said calmly.

    Gold and crimson light sprang up around his body as he rotated his runes. An imposing aura of a god slowly emanated from Akata and it made others want to revere and worship him. Akata opened his eyes and an intense will to fight could be seen within. However deep within those crimson eyes that held a lust for battling could be seen a calm killing intent.

    ¡°You can die now.¡± Akata spoke calmly.

 Chapter 155: Crushed

    The gold and crimson light radiating from Akata was very mysterious and profound. The fairy had no idea what it was capable of but just seeing it made Akata¡¯s danger level rise dramatically. The fairy thought Akata was already dangerous before, but now, he became a huge threat.

    ¡®What is wrong with these children?! They¡¯re only at the First Rank and I¡¯m at the Second Rank but just them standing there is pressuring me to this extent. It should be utterly impossible.¡¯ The fairy became enraged as he thought about the presence that mere First Rank kids were giving off. With a roar, translucent wings appeared behind his back and he flew into the air.

    Glittering motes of light fell from his wings as he hovered above the leaders. ¡°A bunch of trash! You all deserve to die!¡± The fairy waved his hand in the air and hundreds of leaves appeared around him. The leaves rolled up and became sharp spikes as they aimed toward the group of five.

    ¡°Draining Leaf Rain!¡± The fairy howled and pointed toward the group. With a ''whoosh'' the hundreds of leaf spikes shot toward the group with a shocking speed. Each and every leaf was a meter long and carried a shocking amount of vitality within. Even as they descended, life energy was steadily absorbed by them in the air.

    Of course, Akata and the others weren¡¯t just going to stand and watch as the spikes pummeled them. Peizhi Xiuying and Fang Zuwa were the first to disappear as they could combine with their Yin Mist and Mental Corrosion Fog respectfully. Even if the number of leaf spikes were bigger, as long as it didn¡¯t completely destroy their domains in one shot they would essentially be completely safe.

    Sno Re raised his four arms as blinding silver light sprang up around him. The silver light condensed under his feet and soon the form of a wolf could be seen. The light solidified and the wolf fully manifested under his body. The wolf looked sinister and cold and it had the presence of an all around powerhouse. It looked peerless as if nothing in the world could match its superiority. With a low growl the wolf suddenly sped off.

    Cho Re raised his four arms as golden light radiated from his body. Instantly the light condensed into the form of a lion. The lion¡¯s mane was completely golden and it looked to be the king of the surrounding area. The golden aura radiating from it made it out to be a supreme being under the sun. Cho Re hopped onto the lion and also sped off.

    Everyone made the decision to dodge this furious attack that was created from pure hatred. That was because even though they had confidence in fighting this fairy who was in the Second Rank, none of them felt sure that they could take a full blown attack from someone in the Second Rank head on. After all, the strongest amongst them weren¡¯t even at the peak of the First Rank. It could be seen as the logical choice to want to avoid this attack as best as they could and dodge it.

    But¡­ logic didn¡¯t apply in Akata¡¯s case. He stood in the same place staring at the incoming hundreds of leaf spikes that were hurtling towards him with reckless might. ¡°Humph.¡± He gave a cold snort as he raised his fist and prepared to throw a punch out.

    The fairy was delighted upon seeing this. He originally thought all of them would scatter and that would give him a chance to take care of them one by one. But who would¡¯ve thought that one of them overestimated his abilities and sought to take his attack head on? He was simply looking to die and early death. ¡®That takes care of one.¡¯ He thought to himself as a smug smile surfaced across his face. But soon that smile vanished as his mouth hung open with disbelief.

    An illusory rock appeared in front of Akata¡¯s fist and the power coming from it was insane. It created an unthinkable pressure that even made the fairy want to back away. He simply couldn¡¯t believe this kind of power was being created from the boy who wasn¡¯t even 14 yet.

    ¡°Wha¡­ What technique is this?! This kind of power should be impossible to create at your level. It has the pressure of a Second Rank cultivator.¡± The fairy blanched and shock emanated from his entire body.

    Boom! Akata threw his punch out and instantly a wave of overpowering pressure engulfed the surrounding area. Many of the leaf spikes were thrown away or were destroyed in the clash of energy. The energy of the fist was abundant and simply not somthing that a First Rank cultivator shouldn''t be capable of. Although it was very powerful it still wasn''t up to par in a clash against a true terchnique used by a Second Rank cultivator. It wasn¡¯t enough to overpower the whole thing.Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings.

    Many of the leaf spikes were thrown away and lost their energy or were destroyed in the clash, but even then, two-thirds of the leaf spikes still remained. With Second Rank might they carried on and struck all over the place.

    Si. Si. Si. Hundreds of leaf spikes were embedded into the ground and the area encompassing them started to become lifeless. Akata frowned at this scene as he could tell that the life energy was being sucked up from the leaves. Grass turned gray and withered while even the mist and fog were being slowly drained of their life energy.

    Even though his attack still managed to split the group up and even connect with the ground, the fairy had furrowed brows. ¡®That energy that he unleashed should¡¯ve been sucked up from draining leaves but it didn¡¯t. That can only mean two things, one, his attack was too strong and my draining leaves weren¡¯t capable of breaching it, or two, there was no life within his attack to begin with. The former isn¡¯t possible because he clearly couldn¡¯t overpower my attack so that can only mean his attack held no life within it at all.¡¯

    What did this mean? It meant that the fairy¡¯s attacks would be useless against Akata¡¯s attacks. The fairy trained in the Inner Element of Leaves and the Outer Elements of Life and Yang. Because of this he created a skill that drained everything of life. As he fought, his opponent''s skills would be useless as they would all crumble before his attacks, having their life energy drained from them. But since Akata¡¯s attacks didn¡¯t contain life energy there was no way to drain it, therefore, Akata''s attacks could actually block the fairy''s.

    Thinking up to here the fairy became even more angry. These kids just kept on having more and more tricks up their sleeves! It was truly infuriating to him.

    While the fairy was hovering in the air lost in thought, how could the leaders just give up this perfect opportunity? Peizhi Xiuying and Fang Zuwa decisively recalled their mist and fog because they sensed their life energy being absorbed.

    Peizhi Xiuying suddenly and silently appeared behind the fairy as a black petal turned into dust within her palm. An intense coldness spread out and engulfed the fairy who was lost in thought, quickly alerting him of the danger. The black dust became a dark light which illuminated the already dark surroundings. A strong corrosive aura emanated from the light.

    Before the fairy could turn around however, a figure covered in dense gray mist appeared in front of him in a ghostly manner. The figure was none other than Fang Zuwa and he had his hand raised in the air. Within his palm was a dense gray ball of fog that emitted an intense corrosive energy.

    The two of them pointed at the fairy in front of their eyes. A black light shot forth from Peizhi Xiuying while a gray fog light was ejected from Fang Zuwa¡¯s palm. The two attacks both contained a vicious amount of corrosive energy and when targeting one opponent, it could only be imagined what effect would befall that person.

    Fifth Petal Transformation: Yin Corrosion.

    Corrosive Fog Beam.

    The fairy wasn¡¯t slow to react as he was an expert who had reached the Second Rank. With a grunt a boundless aura of life and yang energy emanated from him. He spread his arms out as each palm was facing toward the two attacks. A leaf the size of a head appeared in front of each palm and started swiveling around. The fairy¡¯s eyes were becoming bloodshot from his anger.

    ¡°Leaf Leech Beam!¡± The Outer Elements of Life and Yang converged on the leaves. The leaves started to glow green and they curled up into a ball. The ball started to shrink in on itself as a fearsome aura emanated from it. With a bang the ball blew apart and an intense aura of destruction shot out toward the attacks coming toward him.

    The Leaf Leech Beam came into contact with the attacks but there wasn¡¯t a huge explosion from the contact of differing energies, instead it was completely silent. The attack from the fairy was actually eating away at the two corrosive attacks and slowly dissolving them. As the Leaf Leech Beam went on it didn¡¯t lose energy but instead slowly strengthened itself. The fairy''s attack was actually eating away at the corrosive energy that came from Peizhi Xiuying and Fang Zuwa!

    The fairy quickly made some incantation gestures and threw one hand in front of him and one behind as two giant leaves appeared and surrounded his body. Boom! Boom! Two attacks bounced off of the leaf shield as gold and silver light shot everywhere. He waved both of his hands and sent the two giant leaves hurtling toward Cho Re and Sno Re who just attacked him. ¡°Godly Leaf Retribution.¡± The leaves stopped above the heads of Cho Re and Sno Re and began emitting a strange goldish-green light that covered their bodies. Instantly the brothers fell to the ground as a suctioning force slowly took away their life energy.

    The fairy gave a cold smile as he made some more gestures and pointed toward Peizhi Xiuying and Fang Zuwa. ¡°Grand Yaga Leaf.¡± Instantly a huge golden leaf appeared behind the figures of Peizhi Xiuying and Fang Zuwa. The leaf blocked off their route to escape and the only way to get away from the leaf was to move forward, toward the Leaf Leech Beam which devoured life energy.

    They knew that if they touched such an attack much of their life would be drained and they would possibly die in an instant. Without much thought they sought to attack the golden leaf behind them. They each sent out a strong punch to break out quickly but soon discovered a terrifying notion.

    ¡°This leaf absorbs our life energy if we touch it.¡± Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s face couldn¡¯t help but turn pale. If anything touched the leaf then the life from that thing would be absorbed by the leaf. Not only that, the leaf was abnormally tough and wouldn¡¯t break easily.

    Akata¡¯s face tightened and his gaze couldn¡¯t help but lock onto the fairy who was staring right at him. The fairy had a cold smug on his face and he couldn¡¯t help but laugh out loud. ¡°They don¡¯t have any methods of escaping, all of your friends will die in front of you. And there¡¯s nothing you can do about it.¡±

    With those words how could Akata simply stand by? A cold gleam appeared within his crimson eyes that really contrasted with his abnormally calm face. Whoosh! A crimson cloud filled with sparks of electricity and full of vitality surfaced around Akata¡¯s body. He raised the Bludhaven Scythe in his golden plant arm and pointed it at the fairy.

    ¡°I¡¯m. Going. To. Take. Your. Soul.¡±

 Chapter 156: Might of Aura

    Sno Re and Cho Re were having their life energy slowly drained from them as time went on. Soon they would lose their lives. Fang Zuwa and Peizhi Xiuying on the other hand were at the verge of being hit by a move that would surely kill them in an instant.

    Akata¡¯s crimson eyes looked as cold as ice as he gazed upon the fairy above him. Two things were going through his mind right now, how to save his friends and how to kill this fairy.

    At this point in time Akata was truly enraged and couldn¡¯t care less what methods he used as long as he killed this fairy. With a flash of black light Akata, along with his new element, appeared in front of the fairy and he swung with his scythe aiming to knock the fairy down to the ground.

    ¡°You overestimate your abilities. Even though I¡¯m weak in close combat, I still have the body of a Second Rank cultivator. Your measily strength won¡¯t be able to compare with the difference of a whole Rank.¡± The fairy snickered and it seemed that its mood drastically changed from the shock it had before.

    Akata didn¡¯t listen to any of this as he still swung out. His arms were filled with the rage in his heart and as he swung black light gathered on his scythe. Looking at the scythe that came closer to him, even the fairy couldn¡¯t help but shudder. It felt as if his soul was shaking as the scythe was approaching him. He immediately summoned a leaf sword and swung out to meet the scythe head on.

    Boom!

    Akata was thrown back from the collision but he was already filled with rage and hatred so he recovered nearly instantly and went back on the assault. The fairy remained in the same place but a weird look was in his eyes.

    ¡®It feels as if something was taken from my leaf sword and it became weaker and more fragile.¡¯ The fairy frowned. He couldn¡¯t figure out what happened in that collision. But how could it guess that Akata used a peerless technique created by a Fourth Rank cultivator. It was exactly the first stance of the Underdark Arts created by Cultist Soulfire, Soul Swipe. It was a super fast skill that swiped past everything, even souls. Being attacked by this would drain an opponent of some of their soul. It was a miniscule amount but given enough hits it would be enough to make the whole soul crumble.

    The fairy didn¡¯t even think of the possibility of Akata having some insights into the Outer Element of Souls. Not only was the soul element an Outer Element, it was also the most supreme of Outer Elements. Even if Akata was a monster in his eyes, there was no way he could control the power of such a supreme element.

    Akata rushed back in toward the fairy. Although the fairy was at the Second Rank, it wasn¡¯t a close combat fighter. In fact, Akata could tell that the fairy really wasn¡¯t a fighter at all. If anything, he was a defensive fighter that looked to always protect itself or find opportunities to run away.

    The reason he could tell this was by the moves the fairy had unleashed already. None of the skills the fairy used were truly offensive. Even the Draining Leaf Rain that shot out earlier was meant to split the group up so the fairy could fight them one on one. Akata wasn¡¯t scared at all facing the fairy in close combat.

    How good were Akata¡¯s close combat skills? His insights into the scythe reached the Third Rank long ago. His body was perfectly remade by the World Omen of Lord Dullahan to use various assassination methods and the scythe. He trained in a Fourth Rank Art and an Immortal Art. His soul was powerful to the point he achieved Soul Foresight. He had many cultivation bases that weren¡¯t weak and his own skills were very profound.

    Akata appeared in front of the fairy again and raised his scythe to hit again. Bam! The fairy met Akata¡¯s scythe with his leaf sword once again and pushed him back. ¡®This child is too strong. I can¡¯t do anything besides pushing him back.¡¯ The fairy¡¯s eyes couldn¡¯t help but slightly widen at the prowess Akata displayed.

    Akata was pushed back again but this time he didn¡¯t rush back in. He instead used the force of being pushed back to go toward where Peizhi Xiuying was at. Fang Zuwa had a weird ghost like form that made it easier for him to hold back the fairy¡¯s attack. Peizhi Xiuying was also a False Plant Cultivator which granted her plenty of lifeforce, so she was also able to hold back the fairy¡¯s attack with little difficulty.Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

    Akata still wanted to rescue them as fast as he could. Not only would their lives be out of danger but they could also help him against this fairy. But, how would the fairy let him do that? As soon as the fairy saw Akata heading in that direction a smile surfaced on his face.

    ¡°Ahahaha! You think I¡¯ll let you try to save them? Think again!¡± The fairy waved its hand as multiple Grand Yaga Leaves appeared in front of his figure. One golden leaf wrapped up the fairy and was made into the appearance of a golden robe, another rolled up and became a sword while the others took on the shape of shields and swirled around his body in a defensive manner. The Grand Yaga Leaves glowed with a golden glow that radiated over the area and made for a celestial scene. The fairy dashed toward where Akata was at and arrived their in the blink of an eye. His speed was truly shocking.

    Akata couldn¡¯t even comprehend how the fairy suddenly appeared in front of him. He just had time to instinctively use his scythe to block his front. Bang! He was thrown back from the collision of scythe and sword.

    Akata landed on the ground and as he looked back up his cold eyes that could pierce through the warmest of hearts caused the fairy to inwardly shiver. Akata was truly getting angry. Time and time again he was being pushed back while his friends were slowly dying. He was right there but he could nothing to even get near them.

    He couldn¡¯t fly until he reached the Second Rank and even if he could, the fairy was many times faster than him. That was because fairies were able to start flying as soon as they were born. Fairy wings made that possible and also increased their speed to insane amounts. If it could be said that beasts had the toughest bodies compared to mortals within the same Rank and Grade then fairies had the fastest speed compared to mortals.

    ¡®I¡¯m going to utterly kill this person and refine his soul for my use.¡¯ Akata could think of nothing besides killing this fairy. The sect¡¯s trials had taught him to not have any mercy with his enemies. He was taught to be efficient when fighting and only make reasonable movements. Akata had carved this into his heart. He wouldn¡¯t be rash, especially in this type of situation.

    ¡®Since he won¡¯t let me personally go there and destroy those life draining techniques I¡¯ll just have to trick him.¡¯ Akata¡¯s eyes flashed with a golden sheen. He started to rotate his golden rune and as he did golden light sprang up around his body and shone on everything. The light was really bright and mysterious, even the fairy wasn¡¯t able to see through it.

    ¡®What¡¯s he planning now?¡¯ The fairy was on high alert. Although Akata was weak, he couldn¡¯t take his tactics and power lightly. The Grand Yaga Leaves swirled around his figure quicker.

    Whoosh!

    A figure shot out of the golden light and right for the fairy.

    ¡°You aren¡¯t fast enough to get by me with that kind of speed.¡± The fairy snorted. He waved his hand and the leaves around his body moved to guard against Akata who shot out from the golden light.

    Bang!

    Akata collided with the shields with a strong force. The fairy was prepared and as soon as Akata collided he struck out with his sword, sending it through the Grand Yaga Leaf in front of him.

    Si!

    The golden leaf sword stabbed through the Grand Yaga Leaf shield and into Akata¡¯s body. ¡°Ha! You used this kind of tactic to fight me? You really overestimated yourself. Heh. I really overestimated you as well so it can¡¯t be blamed.¡± The fairy laughed out. But soon his face became stiff and his pupils constricted. After that utter rage filled his face.

    Akata who was stabbed with the leaf sword suddenly shattered into purple motes of light. The fairy could then instantly tell that the ¡®Akata¡¯ he just stabbed was an illusion from the beginning. His face became stiff from seeing Akata shatter, his pupils constricted because he realized it was a powerful illusion, but then he realized he had been tricked. He was tricked by a mortal cultivator at the First Rank, a mere kid!

    Akata, who was within the golden light still instantly shot out right after his illusory figure did. This time, instead of heading toward Fang Zuwa or Peizhi Xiuying who were in the air, he went to save Sno Re and Cho Re. If the fairy wanted to stop him now, he would have to come in person. Akata could definitely fight the fairy on the ground. Either way the fairy had a choice and that was either to fight Akata on the ground or let him save two of the monsters.

    The fairy hesitated and that gave Akata enough time to get near Cho Re. Akata raised his Bludhaven Scythe in the air and channeled the soul element into it. Soul Swipe! The scythe slashed down with the full power Akata could muster. Clang! The scythe simply bounced off the leaf above Cho Re¡¯s head. Akata frowned but then his crimson eyes flashed with coldness. His golden plant arm stretched out and along with it an azure vine shot toward the leaf.

    The azure vine seemed capable of devouring everything. Once it came into contact with the leaf it instantly covered over its surface. In a mere instant the leaf was fully devoured with nothing remaining. Akata immediately recalled his azure vine. He was still scared of this power and didn¡¯t dare to use it constantly.

    Cho Re was released from the burden of having his life energy drained. He was in more danger of dying than the others. Fang Zuwa and Peizhi Xiuying had their methods of lasting longer and although Sno Re didn¡¯t have those methods, he cultivated a peerless defensive art. Cho Re on the other hand had no way to defend himself so his life was being absorbed the fastest of the four.

    ¡°Cover me so I can save your brother!¡± Akata yelled as he dashed toward the direction of Sno Re. If he had the brothers by his side they could keep the fairy busy while he concentrated on saving the others.

    However, how would the now enraged fairy let that happen? ¡°Might of Aura!¡± The fairy said through gritted teeth. Whoosh! An intense wave of pressure washed over the area and crushed down on everything. Beasts and cultivators alike were affected by this pressure and could do nothing but be forced on the ground and try to hold back this pressure.

    Cho Re knelt on the ground and looked at the fairy in shock. He gritted his teeth and low roars could be heard coming from his mouth but he was unable to move. Akata similarly had a knee on the ground and was unable to move as well. ¡®What is this power?¡¯ Shock appeared within Akata¡¯s eyes.

 Chapter 157: Fearsome Figure

    The pressure released by the fairy was unnatural and it weighed down on everything. Akata felt as if a formless ancient power was pushing him to the ground, trying to make him kneel in front of this fairy. He couldn¡¯t fight back against it at all, there was simply no way to force himself to stand up. The whole battlefield went silent as mortals and beasts alike were pushed to the ground.

    Akata couldn¡¯t tell if the fairy was utterly enraged or was entirely exhausted but when it unleashed this strange power, its eyes became blood red and its breathing was forceful. Not only that but the attacks that were eating away at the life of Peizhi Xiuying and the others crumbled. They too were forced to the ground and couldn¡¯t stand up.

    The fairy was in the air overlooking all of the figures that were in the area. He looked to be an ancient supreme being that could only be looked up to and not looked down upon. After a few breaths of time the fairy finally stabilised his breathing but even then his face still showed exhaustion, clearly this strange move of his drained a lot of energy.

    ¡°Aha¡­ Ahahaha¡­ AHAHAHA!! There¡¯s nobody that can stand up to me. Nobody that can face me head on. This skill I learned is peerless within the world and nobody can go against its power. Ahaha! Kid, today is your lucky day. Today you will witness the strength of a lost ancient power that I can cultivate, Might of Aura. You, along with everyone else here, will die from this power of mine. Nothing can stop it as people can only worship it.¡± The fairy seemed to be crazed and in ecstasy as he spoke.

    ¡®Might of Aura? What¡¯s that?¡¯ Akata¡¯s mind spun as he tried to think of a way to get out of this situation. This power wasn¡¯t a simple pressure that pushed him to the ground, it was also a mental attack that made him want to submit to the fairy. Although it was only a faint feeling it was still there. Perhaps it was so miniscule that nobody in the area would actually submit but if the fairy could use this power better then wouldn¡¯t that mean he could make an army of loyal soldiers instantly with this power? How fearsome of an ability was that?!

    The fairy vanished from its position and suddenly reappeared in front of Akata¡¯s figure. ¡°Insolent human, this is true power that humans can¡¯t even think about mastering. You still try to struggle before me? Heh. It¡¯s useless, I haven¡¯t even fully comprehended this power but its prowess is already something you can¡¯t match.¡± The fairy waved his hand and more of the power weighed down upon Akata¡¯s body.

    The ancient power called Might of Aura weighed down on Akata and prevented him from standing up. The power crept into his body in an attempt to further restrain him. It seeped into his mental dimension, his dantion, and his soul space. When the power came across the crimson rune it shuddered and attempted to run away but the crimson rune spun and unleashed a glow that slowed it down and devoured it. It then proceeded to cleanse all of the power from Akata¡¯s body.

    Akata could feel that he could move again thanks to his crimson rune helping him out. He still didn¡¯t know what the rune was or all that it was capable of but since it was able to easily fight back against this ancient and supreme power that meant that it definitely wasn¡¯t as simple as Akata thought it was before. Although the Might of Aura power couldn¡¯t hinder Akata any longer, he still feigned powerlessness and pretended to struggle to prevent the fairy from noticing anything amiss.

    Seeing Akata finally go down on both knees the fairy couldn¡¯t help but smile coldly. He walked to the side of Akata and bent down to his ear. ¡®This is where you are going to die, you humans are pretty tasty snacks so your body won¡¯t go to waste. I¡¯ll leave your companions bones but I will completely devour yours.¡¯ The fairy smiled in satisfaction.

    Swoosh!

    A scythe suddenly appeared and swiped at the area the fairy was at. A huge gash was sliced open on the fairy¡¯s chest and blood spurted out. The fairy staggered backwards and held its chest with his hand, his face was filled with disbelief. ¡°How can you still move?!¡± He yelled with fright.

    Akata didn¡¯t waste any words as he continued his attacks. He slashed out again but this time it was faster. The fairy was prepared but it was too slow to dodge all the way and another wound appeared on its body. Blood kept leaking from him and confusion and rage filled his face. Why wasn¡¯t Might of Aura working? It was supposed to be a peerless skill created by the fairy race long ago and nothing should counter it. How was this child able to move within it?

    Akata didn¡¯t think anymore about why his rune was able to counter this power, all that was on his mind was killing this fairy. He swung his scythe faster and faster, attempting to slash the fairy apart. The fairy was too fast however and he wasn¡¯t able to hit any vitals. ¡®I have to swing faster or these flesh wounds won¡¯t be enough to kill him.¡¯ Akata went berserk as he swung his scythe over and over again. Its speed was slowly getting faster as he kept swinging.If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.

    Swish. Swish. Swish. Akata¡¯s perfect body made it possible to constantly improve his skills without any worry of having to slowly strengthen himself. His body that was reformed by Lord Dullahan seemed to be connected to his crimson rune. When Akata refined energy to strengthen himself, his body would also gain some of that energy and increase its might.

    Scythe afterimages appeared as Akata increased his swinging speed. If before his speed could be said to be fast then now it could be considered peerlessly swift. The scythe glided in the air without any restrictions and it was as if nothing could stop its momentum.

    ¡®The scythe is swift and agile. It is meant for pure speed and straightforward power. There¡¯s nothing that can stop it once it gains momentum.¡¯ Although Akata was purely focusing on attacking the fairy, he couldn¡¯t help but comprehend a few more things regarding the scythe. Under his onslaught of attacks, Akata actually managed to breakthrough and his comprehension of the scythe reached the Second Rank!

    The two were exchanging blows back and forth but the fairy slowly became more pressured as the fight went on. He could feel Akata¡¯s strength slowly increasing as he attack. All of a sudden he felt a total change to Akata¡¯s attacks and he instantly became pressured and fell back rapidly.

    Akata¡¯s eyes were cold and even though his understanding of the scythe broke through to the Second Rank, it only matched the comprehension of the fairy, it wasn¡¯t enough to actually kill him. Akata still had to be on guard and find an opening to kill the fairy.

    ¡°AAARGH!¡± The fairy roared and made incantation gestures. He pointed at Akata and suddenly boundless pressure came rushing over. ¡°Might of Aura!¡± The fairy once again utilized this move to fight against Akata. The ancient power washed over Akata and forced him back as he wasn¡¯t prepared for it. The fairy used this chance to flash in front of Akata and slash out with his Grand Yaga Sword.

    Akata immediately rotated his crimson rune and forced the Might of Aura power to vanish from pressuring his body. He quickly dodged to the side but couldn¡¯t fully evade the strike. A gash appeared on Akata¡¯s abdomen and if it were a bit deeper then he would have been disemboweled completely and killed on the spot.

    Disregarding his injury and focused back on attacking. The trials had taught him to not only be ruthless with others, he especially had to be many times more ruthless to himself. Crimson smoke appeared around Akata¡¯s wound and boundless vitality seeped out. The wound could then be seen healing at a visible rate.

    Lightning flickered within Akata¡¯s gaze as much more crimson smoke appeared around his figure. Vitality filled the smoke and sparks of lightning could be seen within. His figure flashed and he reappeared behind the fairy. His speed could be said to have increased by leaps and bounds when using his new element. Akata raised his scythe and as he did a pink glow appeared around his body. The glow seemed capable of drawing the attention of every being that looked at. Akata slashed out but the fairy was completely prepared for it.

    Swish! The Grand Yaga Sword shot out explosively and pierced through Akata¡¯s chest, barely missing his heart. Akata¡¯s eyes went wide and he couldn¡¯t help but cough out a mouthful of blood. He stared at the fairy in front of him with cold calm eyes.

    ¡°Ahahaha! You thought you could fight me evenly? How absurd. I¡¯ll show you what it means to mess with me. You¡¯re going to wish you were dead.¡± The fairy¡¯s tone became ice cold and another Grand Yaga Sword appeared within his other hand. While the fairy used Might of Aura he wasn¡¯t able to utilize other techniques. All he was capable of was using his weapon.

    Swish! The fairy sliced off some skin from Akata¡¯s arm. To his surprise, however, Akata didn¡¯t even wince. It was as if he didn¡¯t suffer an attack at all. The fairy continued his assault and torture. He would stab Akata repeatedly, making sure to miss his vitals. He would slice, pierce, whack, all sorts of things in order to break Akata. But nothing seemed to work. Akata wouldn¡¯t even let his face deform, let alone let a groan out.

    Akata continued to look calmly at the fairy in front of him and that made the fairy more fearful than anything. ¡®This boy gives me an uneasy feeling. I ought to end this fast then.¡¯ The fairy no longer thought about ¡°torturing¡± Akata and instead sought to kill him now. He raised his Grand Yaga Sword and aimed it at Akata¡¯s throat. Swish!

    Blood, skin, and clothes were everywhere. Akata didn¡¯t even appear human anymore as his body was badly mutilated thanks to the fairy. But not an ounce of pain could be seen on his face at this moment, only utter calmness. This type of calmness gave his friends and especially his enemies an eerie feeling deep in their hearts. They didn¡¯t know what Akata was capable of and that brought fear to their hearts.

    The sword stabbed out but it was at this time that the pink glow on Akata¡¯s body completely disappeared. The glow seemed to enter into his body and transform. All of a sudden the pink glow sprang back out and shone on everything. It illuminated the surroundings and washed over everybody in the area.

    The sword in the fairy¡¯s hand stopped moving and one could see the hand holding it trembling uncontrollably. The fairy had his eyes wide open and utter fear dwelled within his pupils. In front of his eyes was a skeletal figure dressed in a ragged black cloak. This figure was covered in blood and an ancient eerie aura suffused from him.

    The skeletal figure reached out with a hand and grabbed onto the sword that was inches away from its throat. When the hand touched the sword a crimson light appeared deep within the black eye sockets of the skeleton. When that crimson light appeared, the fairy felt his hand become lighter. When he looked down he discovered that his sword had turned transparent as motes of light floated from it. The motes of light then gathered around the skeleton¡¯s other hand until it took on a ball-like shape. The skeleton pinched the ball and held it up into the air. It then dropped it and the ball fell into the skeleton¡¯s mouth where it was swallowed in one gulp.

    This scene utterly frightened the fairy and he no longer had any will to fight. What had just happened? This terrifying figure suddenly appeared in front of him. That wouldn¡¯t have been so scary but then it actually took and ate the soul of his Grand Yaga Sword. This sword was made from his Grand Yaga Leaves and therefore had strong defensive capabilities and a very strong lifeforce. It was even to the point that the life contained in a Grand Yaga Leaf was nearly a third of his own lifeforce. Yet, not only did the skeleton figure take away that lifeforce, it did it in a mere instant. How terrifying would it be if that hand of the skeleton touched his own body?

    The fairy no longer thought about fighting. He no longer thought about where this skeleton came from. He no longer thought about the mortals, the element Akata created, the genius kids, or anything else. All he cared about was fleeing and saving his life.

 Chapter 158: Lelilio Puâ€™ Pei

    The black-cloaked skeletal figure stood there with its empty emotionless face looking in the direction of the fairy in front of it. It didn¡¯t have eyes but if one looked deep within its eye sockets one would find a crimson glow. A terrifying and strange pressure emanated from the skeleton that completely focused on the fairy. Complete silence reigned supreme at the moment as one could even hear the noise of a bird flapping its wings.

    ¡°Spare¡­ spare me.¡± The fairy was utterly terrified right now. ¡°I¡­ I¡­ I am a fairy from the noble Grand Yaga House in the Celestial Night Forest. My elder sister has some status and she will definitely not let you off if you harm me! My father is an Elder of the Grand Yaga House and he won¡¯t let anyone get away with hurting me. My¡­ My¡­¡± The fairy kept on muttering about status and power and other things in order to get this skeletal figure from attacking it.

    Of course this skeletal figure was Akata. The reason he looked like this was very simple. It wasn¡¯t a transformation technique or a skill that increased his strength. It was actually a technique that Akata had comprehended back in the sect when he had gained it in the trials. Shattering Heart. It was an ¡°attack¡± that struck the heart and soul and brought the opponents worst fear into imagination right in front of them. It was actually a technique from Monarch Heartsoul that Akata gained in the 10th trial.

    The technique was very profound as it made the opponent¡¯s fear turn into reality. Whatever the opponent envisioned to be the scariest thing would appear in front of them. Everything about what they fear will seem real to them from the appearance, pressure, voice, actions, feelings, place, and time. If a person feared being stabbed hundreds of times while deep underwater, then if someone used this move that person would find themselves at the bottom of the ocean with unbearable pain from being stabbed.

    Of course this skill was very profound and Akata wasn¡¯t able to comprehend it to a level where he could cause his opponents mind to falter that greatly to affect their sense of location. At his level, all he was capable of doing was changing his appearance to match his opponent¡¯s fear. In reality Akata didn¡¯t think this move was much so he hadn¡¯t used it but after seeing the effects it had on the fairy Akata thoroughly believed in the power of this technique.

    At a high enough level, Shattering Heart was able to see through a person¡¯s fears and create them with unbelievable realism. Of course, it couldn¡¯t physically harm the person as it was just a mental attack, but it was entirely possible to destroy a person¡¯s will to fight or even move. In that state, they would essentially be like a lamb ready to be slaughtered. There would be no resistance at all when fighting that person and it would be simplicity in itself to kill them with a single strike.

    ¡°What¡¯s going on? Why did the fairy stop attacking all of a sudden?¡± One person said.

    ¡°Yeah, even the pressure that weighed down on us previously just vanished.¡± Another disciple spoke and said.

    The many disciples started to stand up and look toward where Akata and the fairy were at. All they could see was the fairy that had utter fear in his eyes and Akata who just stood there looking at him.

    The fairy¡¯s Grand Yaga Sword was still in the air and pointed at Akata¡¯s throat but it didn¡¯t move even an inch closer to him. Akata breathed a huge sigh of relief before stretching out his hand and grabbing onto the sword. With a single thought, a crimson glow emanated from his hand that was holding the sword as he channeled the Outer Element of Souls through his body. The sword in his hand steadily lost its energy as Akata slowly refined the soul energy within it.

    At Akata¡¯s comprehension level in the Outer Element of Souls he was now able to slowly absorb the soul energy within objects if there wasn¡¯t any resistance going against him. Even if a tiny bit of resistance emerged, Akata would be unable to absorb anything.

    In a few breaths of time Akata completely absorbed the soul energy of the Grand Yaga Sword. It had to be said that the sword was filled with soul energy. Soul energy was the origin of all life; it contained lifeforce, mental energy, body energy, and any other kind of energy. That was all absorbed by Akata right now and it actually improved his own body.This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

    After absorbing the soul energy of the sword, it no longer had any threatening presence towards Akata. But Akata didn¡¯t dare to be at ease. The sword was made from the Grand Yaga Leaf that the fairy could produce on a whim. Therefore it didn¡¯t matter how many of them Akata destroyed.

    Akata didn¡¯t waste time. Using this period that the fairy was dazed and frightened, he hurriedly summoned the Blacksoul Scythe that was a Third Rank weapon and channeled all of his energy into it. Akata was only at the First Rank so using Third Rank items drained him of all of his energy.

    ¡°No. No. No no no no no! Spare me! Spare me! I¡¯m a noble fairy! My name is Lelilio Pu¡¯ Pei. I can give you anything you want! Money, pills, techniques, weapons, I can get you anything you want!¡± The fairy continued to cry out for mercy.

    With eyes as calm as a lake surface Akata held the scythe in the air. Black and crimson hellfire arose on the body of the scythe giving off a cold and desolate feeling. An awe-inspiring pressure soon emanated from the tip of the scythe as gold and crimson light shone off of it. A black light was then summoned on the body of the scythe.

    Guillotine Slice. Clear Passage.

    Akata¡¯s eyes suddenly flickered with dense killing intent as he swung his scythe down with all of his might. How fearsome was a direct attack from Akata when one didn¡¯t have a single defensive measure up against him.

    The thing that surprised everyone was that there wasn¡¯t a huge boom or deafening roar that sounded out once Akata struck out. It was completely silent. The scythe completely sliced through the neck of the fairy as easily as slicing through water with the hand. The head rolled to the ground and the everyone could clearly see the fear still lingering within the open eyes of the fairy.

    Bang!

    Akata fell to the ground panting heavily. This fight had taken a lot out of him. Not only had he fought right after dealing with a fearsome tribulation, he even used so much energy. The Shattering Heart technique was a skill that was even more precious than an immortal skill, from this it could be seen how fearsome it would be. Along with that ferocity one could imagine the energy needed to use it. But not only did Akata use that skill for the time of a few breaths he even used the Third Rank weapon the Blacksoul Scythe. As of this moment his energy was completely spent and was at a dangerous level.

    Roar!

    ¡°Crap! We still have to kill off these beasts.¡± Peizhi Xiuying quickly stood up with a pale face and immediately appeared beside Akata to support him. After that she summoned her Grand Life Vine and began attacking the nearby beasts.

    Seeing Peizhi Xiuying start attacking, how could the others not join in. Very quickly the human cultivators began to attack the beasts that were still on the battlefield. With the help of the four leaders, it only took a few moments before the whole area was rid of beasts. After all, the four leaders were even capable of putting up some resistance against a Second Rank cultivator.

    Akata was extremely exhausted but at this time his mind wasn¡¯t focused on how drained his body was, he was focused on the changes happening to his body at this moment.

    White motes of light that nobody could see were being absorbed right into his body. To be more precise, they were being drawn into his dantion. The white motes of light were gathered together inside of his dantion where they transformed into a small pellet.

    Akata had gained a new cultivation base. 1st Grade of the Fay Rank. It was a cultivation base from the Fairy Realm. A slight smile appeared on his face that was full of content.

    Soon, however something drastic happened. Akata¡¯s face paled as more and more white motes of light flowed into his dantion. The pellet started to split in half and as it did it started to transform. Small translucent wings formed from the two sides of the pellet.

    Fay Rank Grade 2. Fay Rank Grade 4. Fay Rank Grade 7. Fay Rank Grade 9.

    The wings grew bigger and bigger until they reached the size of Akata¡¯s mortal cultivation body. All of that energy at once put too much strain on Akata¡¯s body at one time and he wasn¡¯t able to take it all. A stream of blood shot out of Akata¡¯s mouth and he immediately lost consciousness.

    He had did what he had said he was going to and absorbed the soul of the fairy, but he didn¡¯t expect for it to have such a strong soul. Although Akata¡¯s soul had reached the Second Rank and Lelilio Pu¡¯ Pei was also at the Second Rank, clearly, Akata''s soul was much more weaker than Lelilio Pu'' Pei''s. Lelilio Pu'' Pei''s soul was so strong that it was able to directly put Akata''s new cultivation base at the 9th Grade.

    Seeing Akata pass out Peizhi Xiuying started to panic. She flashed to Akata¡¯s side and inspected him. Upon seeing that it was nothing serious and that he was just exhausted she instantly felt relief. With a flash of an incantation she started to heal Akata and other injured people.

    Whoosh! Suddenly, a formless and invisible energy gathered within Akata¡¯s soul region. The mysterious energy was very profound and as it gathered together, it started to form a weird symbol. The symbol looked to be ancient looking and very powerful. The symbol glittered for an instant within Akata¡¯s soul region but then it disappeared within that very same instant. However, within that instant a translucent aura sprang up around Akata. Nobody noticed it and neither did Akata as he was resting.

 Chapter 159: Unparalleled

    The group of hundreds of cultivators all rested there for a while. After all, all the leaders were injured in the fight just now and had to recover their strength. The cultivators were in high spirits as they had won a fierce fight. But, the leaders weren¡¯t smiling at all. The fight just now was too intense for comfort. Although they had just defeated a Second Rank cultivator none of the leaders could put a smile on their face. They were all in deep thought. The only thing that was on their mind was how much of a difference in strength there was between the First and Second Rank.

    Lelilio Pu¡¯ Pei was only a Second Rank cultivator at the 1st Grade, yet, he was so much more powerful than them. They were completely at his mercy. If it wasn¡¯t for Akata somehow being able to resist him they would have surely died just now. Yet, that wasn¡¯t all. They knew that the fairy they just fought wasn¡¯t even a true fighter. All of his ¡°attacks¡± weren¡¯t meant to directly injure people. They were more defensive than anything. This could be seen how its most basic skill was summoning a strong defensive leaf¡­

    If it were another person in the 1st Grade of the Second Rank they wouldn¡¯t have stood a chance. Let alone them, even Akata would have no way of fighting back against a true fighter at the Second Rank.

    Thus, at this moment, they all secretly vowed to do everything they could to rise in strength faster. If they were overwhelmingly strong they wouldn¡¯t have to worry about other opponents because they would be able to easily annihilate them.

    Akata soon woke up but his face was still slightly pale. He had only recovered about half of his strength at this moment but even still he was full of energy. His eyes gleamed with excitement.

    ¡®The soul of that fairy was really too powerful. It actually brought all of my cultivation bases to the 9th Grade. Now I can merge them all together and truly be peerless in the First Rank. Not only that, but the information his soul contained is truly priceless.¡¯ Akata was ecstatic.

    ¡®Fairies are really special creatures and are much different from every other race I know of. Their bodies are actually formed from an energy called aura and with that they can wield unimaginable might that others can¡¯t even touch upon. The purity of their aura can be shone by how translucent their wings are. The fairy I just absorbed actually had a noble bloodline that made his aura extremely pure.¡¯

    With Akata¡¯s skills in the Outer Elements of Souls he was able to gain much more information from the souls of others. As long as the soul wasn¡¯t too powerful, such as a whole Rank above his own soul, then he could completely read that person¡¯s soul thoroughly. All of its memories could be read by Akata in an instant.

    Akata had yet to move so everyone thought he was still unconscious. ¡®If I use this moment where everyone is right here I could take this time and breakthrough.¡¯ Without any further thinking, Akata went straight to work.

    Akata¡¯s cultivation bases started to glow with a white light as they started to move closer to each other. A small tree that emanated plant energy started to wave its branches around and they soon wrapped around Akata¡¯s mortal cultivation base figure. A bat-winged creature that overflowed with demonic energy flew over and landed on the figure¡¯s head. A worm-like sea beast that was suffused with beast energy sprang up from the lake and coiled around the figure¡¯s waist. A pair of translucent wings that radiated fairy energy shot over and hovered behind the figure¡¯s back.

    Those were Akata¡¯s plant, demon, beast, and fairy cultivation bases respectively. Right now Akata was using the Single Existence Art to fully merge the five cultivation bases together. The Single Existence Art made all things into one so therefore if you used it you had to have a base to start with.

    Just like when Akata made his own element he used the Inner Element of Clouds as the base to hold everything together. That was why his own element had a cloudy look to it. This time, however, he was going to use his mortal cultivation as the base. That was why all the other cultivation bases came to it.Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.

    The small tree started to shrink and as it did it merged into the white figure. The figure in turn started to change. It¡¯s skin, which was originally smooth and even, started to become broken and hard. It actually started to resemble bark off of a tree.

    When the small tree started to merge into the mortal cultivation base so did the other cultivation bases. The bat-winged creature, the worm-like sea beast, and the pair of translucent wings started to merge into the white figure.Akata¡¯s mortal cultivation base soon took on many changes. It¡¯s skin became like the bark of a tree, its head grew devilish horns, on its lower back a tail started to grow, and on its upper back a pair of translucent wings could be seen sprouting.

    The process of merging the cultivation bases was actually extremely smooth without any hiccups at all. There was a good reason why this was. Akata¡¯s cultivation bases were originally a part of him and therefore there was nothing he had to comprehend about it. Not only that but the cultivation level of all of them were the same. Because of these things the merging process was extremely smooth.

    It wasn¡¯t like when he was creating a new element because forming a new element required insights into the elements you were fusing, so they had to be at the same level. It wasn¡¯t that difficult for Akata but it did take some time. However, since he knew everything about himself, the merging of his cultivation bases was just about instantaneous.

    Instantly, Akata¡¯s strength, aura, pressure, and even presence increased by a huge amount at the same time. It was so abrupt that a burst of energy actually escaped his body and swept out into the surroundings. This burst of energy was too shocking and caught everyone off guard.

    Akata gradually opened his eyes and took in a deep breath then exhaled slowly. He stood up and swept his gaze across everyone in his view. Not to mention the regular disciples, even the leaders were terrified of his gaze. Cold sweat formed on their bodies and they even took a step back. That look in Akata¡¯s eyes was too dominating.

    ¡°What¡­ What just happened? Did Akata suddenly become much stronger?¡± Cho Re who even had thoughts of sparring with Akata before instantly crushed that idea into nothingness. His will to fight was broken just like that from one look at Akata. If it was said that the fairy before was a wave that could topple a tree, then Akata at this moment was a wave that could obliterate a whole forest. The two weren¡¯t even close.

    Even though Akata looked like his regular self, his true form was completely different now. His true form would have a tail, a pair of translucent wings, horns, and skin that looked like bark. That was because although it was his cultivation bases that merged, those cultivations originally came from the soul energy of the creatures he had absorbed and that soul energy had transformed his own soul and therefore his own body. Luckily, however, he could remain looking like his regular self since his own soul was the base of everything.

    It must be understood that when Akata used the Single Existence Art to fuse his cultivation bases together, it didn¡¯t only fuse those cultivation bases, It actually fused everything those cultivation bases came from. It was a complete fusion of himself.

    His crimson rune first converted soul energy and then spread it throughout Akata¡¯s body to nourish it. Therefore the energy used to make his cultivation bases was actually all throughout his body. In order to fuse his cultivation bases together, he had to fuse all the mixed energy in his whole body. Luckily all that energy was on the same level otherwise with those different energies colliding together trying to merge it would¡¯ve destroyed his body from the inside out. The strongest energy which was his mortal energy would¡¯ve forcibly eaten everything else which, in other words, would¡¯ve made him devour himself. Akata knew this which is why he didn¡¯t dare try merging his cultivation bases together before they were at the same level of strength.

    Akata stood there and gave a light smile. His energy had only burst out for an instant but it already caused everyone in the vicinity to be scared witless. There was good reason for this. His strength right now was even above the fairy they just fought. And that was with him not even being fully recovered.

    Since everyone was in shock because of him, it was only right that he speak up to dispel this situation. ¡°I just happened to make a breakthrough in something very important and it happened to raise my strength some. Since this is still a test I think that we should carry on with it and complete our tasks so we can return to the sect faster.¡± Akata rubbed the back of his head while he spoke, giving off a playful and innocent appearance.

    But, with his words just now he had jolted all the leaders into clarity.

    ¡°I¡¯ll take my leave first.¡± Fang Zuwa was the first to speak and as he did he waved his hand telling his group to follow behind him. In a few breaths of time his whole group had merged back into the forest to continue their test.

    Cho Re and Sno Re weren¡¯t slow either as they too bid their farewells and called their group mates and led them back into the forest.

    Peizhi Xiuying looked deeply at Akata for a moment before she left with her group as well. Only until Akata confirmed that the other leaders had left did he let out a long breath and shake his head. ¡®It seems she noticed something.¡¯ Akata thought to himself.

    He looked up at his group and soon called them over. ¡°It¡¯s about time we finish this test up. We¡¯re going to charge straight into the Center Circle and complete this test.¡± Akata looked at every single one of his group mates. If before his gaze struck fear into the hearts and souls of these disciples then now it made them think only one word.

    Unparalleled!

 Chapter 160: Center Circle

    Whoosh! Whoosh!

    Figures dashed all throughout Misty Forest. All 13 leaders were rushing towards the Center Circle of Misty Forest. There were some leaders who were some distance behind but there were also some who were infinitely close.

    Misty Forest wasn¡¯t that big of a forest but the mysterious mist inside made one lose their sense of direction and become lost. Without a strong divine sense it would be impossible to tread through it. Luckily, all of the disciples had awakened their divine sense, with the leaders being much stronger than the others. With that, the hundreds of disciples were running through the forest and they were all headed to the same location.

    Akata¡¯s team was very close to the Center Circle and with Akata¡¯s newfound strength, along with his team rising in strength and battle tactics it made it extremely easy to move around. Capturing beasts awarded more points and since their team was so strong they no longer had to kill the beasts. That was because they could handle them all now. At least that was while they were in the Inner Ring.

    The team was very jubilant at this moment because they felt unmatched, as if nothing could beat them. Even if they had to face another team they would have complete confidence in winning.But if it had to be said that the team was simply happy, then Akata would be jumping with joy right now. Not only did he finally merge all of his cultivation bases, he even gained control over a new power from the fairy soul he absorbed. This power was called aura.

    Aura was a formless and undetectable energy that was capable of doing many things that he felt was impossible before. With the power of aura he could actually form wings and fly in the sky. He no longer had to wait until he reached the Second Rank to fly in the air. That wasn¡¯t all that aura could do however.

    Since aura was a formless energy, Akata could wield it to transform into anything he saw fit as long as he had the power to fully control it. He could make walls, floors, beasts, chains, anything he could think of. The only downside was that aura wasn¡¯t a unique skill that the fairy possessed, it was an innate gift all fairy¡¯s had. That gift would have to be slowly nurtured to become powerful and wielded greatly.

    When Akata tried to study it from the soul of the fairy he found out that any information related to aura was blocked away. This proved two things. One, Akata¡¯s level of comprehension regarding the Outer Element of Souls was insufficient to read everything. And two, a very formidable person set restrictions on the soul of this fairy. Akata felt that even if he were to advance to the Third Rank he wouldn¡¯t be able to break these restrictions.

    The fairy soul had granted him access to wielding the aura energy but he had to rely on himself to figure out exactly what it was and how he could use it. So far, he had just been messing with it and found out it can change into different objects.

    ¡®It seems I have to look into what exactly aura is.¡¯ Akata thought to himself while fumbling with a ball of aura. He didn¡¯t have to worry about others noticing the aura as without his permission nobody could sense it.

    ¡®If I remember correctly, the fairy used a skill called Might of Aura that greatly increased the pressure upon everyone. It wasn¡¯t just pressure that weighed down on us but sort of like his dominance was put in place and nobody could go against his word.¡¯ Akata was truly amazed by that skill. It made others submit to the user whether they wanted to or not. What kind of power was that? An insanely useful power in Akata¡¯s eyes.

    Swoosh! Akata and his group stopped in front of a mist that seemed to form a boundary. This was the last zone they had to pass and once they did they would officially be in the Center Circle. Without any hesitation the group shot into the mist and advanced rapidly. Other groups were competing with them and so they had to outperform the others.

    In less than an hour of time the team passed through the mist and officially stepped into the Center Circle. When they reached the other side, no matter if it was a disciple with the lowest cultivation or even Akata, they all had shock on their faces.Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

    That was because in front of their eyes wasn¡¯t more forest, it was actually an enormous palace. In front of the palace was a huge stage that was filled with many different runes and magic incantations. The palace was extremely gorgeous as it was made from gold, silver, and jade. Towers were sprung up everywhere shooting into the sky. Gardens and ponds filled the land of the palace and made for a beautiful scene. Even the pathways were constructed from jade stone and made one feel refreshed just upon looking at it.

    When every member of Akata¡¯s team had stepped through and looked at the wonder of the Center Circle a voice was transmitted into the minds of everyone.

    ¡°Congratulations on making it to the Center Circle. Would the group proceed into the palace for further instruction.¡± As the voice sounded in the minds of everyone a large door in the front of the palace was opened up.

    The door itself was truly grand. It stood ten meters tall and was made from a special material that looked like wood but wasn¡¯t wood. Looked like metal yet wasn¡¯t metal. Carvings of different creatures could be seen on the door such as dragons, phoenixes, turtles, and more.

    After walking up to and admiring the door for a bit of time the group finally managed to will themselves inside. But they were even more dumbfounded upon entering. Inside of the palace there seemed to be a whole world. Not only was there a sky inside of the palace, there were actually many buildings that were grand and imposing. Upon those buildings were actually banners. They were the banners of the Red Cloud Sect. Clearly this place was made for disciples and Elders of the Red Cloud Sect.

    A light suddenly shot out and bore into the foreheads of every single person there. Instantly a map of the area was imprinted into the minds of every single person.

    ¡°Akata meet at the Red Cloud Palace Hall to receive your score and evaluation. Everyone else head to the Red Cloud Gathering Hall until further notice.¡± The voice sounded out again. After looking at each other briefly, Akata and his team parted ways. With the map in their minds, they knew exactly where they were going.

    Akata was amazed as he walked throughout the inside of the palace. He saw many spectacular buildings that were hundreds of feet tall. What also made him surprised was that the place wasn¡¯t deserted. There were magic constructs everywhere that tended to the daily duties of this place. The constructs posed as shopkeepers, maintenance workers, practice dummies¡­ all types of different constructs were everywhere and operated independently.

    This place was called Red Cloud Palace. It was really huge as well. Just with the map in his mind Akata confirmed that this place was as big as a city. Yet it all fit inside of that one palace in the Center Circle. It actually took Akata an hour of time to walk to Red Cloud Palace Hall.

    The building was completely golden in color and stood a few hundred feet in the air. Not only was it tall, it actually floated in the air! The building itself was hundreds of feet tall but it floated more than a thousand feet off the ground. Originally, Akata wanted to fly to the building with his new aura powers but found out that all his power was restricted. He could only shake his head and use the teleportation pad to go inside of the building.

    Once inside, Akata saw three other figures there. One of them was Huihe Ji while another one was Peizhi Xiuying. Clearly those two had arrived first. But what surprised Akata was that Huihe Ji had actually arrived before him. It must be remembered that Huihe Ji didn¡¯t have a group to rely on and that he was by himself. This meant he used his own strength to battle beasts and make a path for himself to arrive here. That was truly admirable in Akata¡¯s eyes.

    He walked up and stood alongside Huihe Ji and Peizhi Xiuying as he looked at the throne that was in front of him. Sitting in the throne, there was a beautiful female dressed in white robes. It was naturally Sect Leader Fu.

    She looked calmly at the three young disciples below her and examined them closely. After a few minutes of silence she stood up and walked to a door that was nearby. ¡°Follow me.¡±

    Without turning her head to make sure they were following she strode through the doorway and into the room that it lead to. Akata and the others could only look puzzled for a second before following behind. They passed through the door and found that they stepped into a normal looking room. It had chairs and a table and even refreshments were there.

    ¡°Take a seat. I have something to discuss with you three.¡± Sect Leader Fu sat in a chair and picked up a cup of tea to start drinking.

    The three didn¡¯t dare to be slow and immediately sat down. They, however, didn¡¯t choose to drink tea so casually in front of the Sect Leader.

    After sipping for a while Sect Leader Fu finally put her cup down and glanced at the three people. She put on a slight smile. ¡°No need to be so tense. What I¡¯m about to share with just the three of you not even some Elder¡¯s know about. This must be kept a secret and if you wish to live then I advise you to do so.¡± Although she had a smile on her face, her words were terrifying.

    She continued on. ¡°You all live in a small city in a small world filled with small people. There are countless marvels out there and by staying here you are restricting your growth. I have worked meticulously to shape everyone of my disciples to set a very strong foundation for the future. If even the weakest disciple I raised was put into the Heavenly Sovereign Empire they could become the overlord of that region given a few years. I purposely slowed down all of your cultivation progress to build this foundation up and from now on I will no longer hold it back. Otherwise, with the resources I have, it wouldn¡¯t be impossible to raise an army of immortals.¡±

    Sect Leader Fu spoke calmly and indifferently about this matter but to Akata, Peizhi Xiuying, and even Huihe Ji, this news was shocking to an extravagant degree!

 Chapter 161: Secrets Unveiled

    Become the overlord of the Heavenly Sovereign Empire?

    Wouldn¡¯t be impossible to raise an army of Immortals?

    What kind of concepts were these?! Any one of these statements could shake the world they lived in. The Heavenly Sovereign Empire was the strongest force on the Divine Crystal Continent that they lived on. If the Mystic Empire they stayed in was considered a speck of dust then the Heavenly Sovereign Empire was a mountain that reached the heavens. They simply couldn¡¯t be compared to each other at all.

    Immortals were seen as legends in their eyes and they were akin to gods. They were capable of doing anything they pleased and could shape the very world themselves with a wave of their hands.

    If it was before the Red Cloud Sect unleashed its might to nurture its disciples to its fullest then Akata and the others would simply believe that all of this was a joke. That was because to them, the Heavenly Sovereign Empire and Immortals were existences that they simply couldn¡¯t reach.

    The shock on Akata¡¯s, Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s, and Huihe Ji¡¯s faces were very apparent but even then Sect Leader Fu didn¡¯t stop talking. ¡°The reason for all of this is because I have a special mission for you three. Originally I was just going to make Akata and Huihe Ji the two Dragon Knights but as I saw your talent Peizhi Xiuying, I figured you could also achieve what I¡¯m about to request of you all.¡± Sect Leader Fu spoke calmly.

    ¡°Right now, speaking honestly, this war is an excuse for something bigger. Bigger than the world you live in. In truth, I am not from this world and neither are First, Second, and Third Elder. We come from the true Red Cloud Sect which is actually called the Red Dragon Cloud Palace. There, a single youth could destroy this world as easily as throwing a tantrum to say nothing of a true expert.

    However, something drastic happened and therefore I had to flee from there. My father wanted to take me and hide but he thought of something different. My father is very skilled in divining fate and soon came up with an idea¡­ to raise a bunch of cultivators that could solve our problems. I thought it was a foolish idea and instantly disagreed with him but, since he is my father I eventually succumbed to his insanity. Now looking at it, there might be hope.

    That is where you three come in. You are to train yourselves to reach a sufficient enough level of cultivation and eventually, if you so choose, work together with me and some others to reverse the situation in my Red Dragon Cloud Palace. Of course, we wouldn¡¯t let you do this for free. My palace is willing to gift you each a priceless treasure that will allow you to roam the universe worry-free. Also, if you accept now, I can give you all a gift that will help you on your path through cultivation.¡±

    Sect Leader Fu looked at them calmly as if she had spoken about a matter that didn¡¯t relate to her destiny and future at all. It was as if she wasn¡¯t worried in the least about their answers as if she already knew what they were going to say.

    ¡°I owe my master too much and if this is what I have to do to repay you then I will surely oblige.¡± Huihe Ji was the first to speak up and he agreed without hesitation. Everyone could see the resoluteness in his eyes and the firm resolve to get stronger.

    ¡°I owe my life to Akata as without him, I would not be here right now. I grew stronger and worked harder in order for me to protect him so wherever he goes I shall accompany him.¡± Peizhi Xiuying held a strong resolve within her too and she indirectly expressed her feelings for Akata at this moment. However, even though she knew that, she wasn¡¯t the least bit embarrassed about it. From this it could be seen how strong her love was.

    Akata first looked at Huihe Ji with a look that said he expected that answer from him but when Peizhi Xiuying spoke it did shock him. He didn¡¯t think she felt that way about him. Although he liked her greatly, he never thought of her in that way. But hearing and seeing her confess so easily without a hint of red surfacing on her face it could be said that her feelings moved him.

    ¡°So in general you raised us to use our future power to fight for you?¡± Akata asked.This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.

    Instantly Huihe Ji and Peizhi Xiuying became shocked. Never had they heard of anyone questioning the Sect Leader. Not even the Elders dared to do so yet Akata did it so blatantly.

    Sect Leader Fu narrowed her eyes and cold gleam flashed by before disappearing without a trace. ¡°Even though your words sounds harsh it is indeed as you have said. I am only using you. The road of cultivation is already so hard to walk but if you agree to my request then it will be many many times harder for you to advance. Death will be around every corner and you will make many powerful enemies. If you choose to want to become the strongest person you will undoubtedly have a harsh and dangerous path ahead of you. What I am asking isn¡¯t whether you want to help me or not, I¡¯m asking if you are ready for the path you will take in the future. Just think of my work done as a favor and if you are able to survive until the end to reach a sufficient strength and help me that favor will be repaid and I will even owe you.¡± Sect Leader Fu first calmed her nerves and killing intent and spoke as softly as possible.

    Even though she spoke softly, everyone could feel the chilliness in her words clearly. The cold killing intent hidden within was felt by the three figures but Akata could feel it the most out of all of them. After all it was directed at him.

    Sweat poured down his back but even then he did not let fear grip him. He bit his tongue and soon regained focus. ¡°I don¡¯t like being used but since our goals align and I already planned to reach the pinnacle of strength I will naturally do all I can to help you, Sect Leader Fu.¡± Akata forced those words out.

    Even though Akata still resisted her absolute dominance Sect Leader Fu actually didn¡¯t get mad this time. Instead she even lightly chuckled. ¡®So he even has the balls to still talk back to me even after that killing intent I displayed. Even the Elders don¡¯t dare to do that. He will definitely have a cruel future ahead of him.¡¯ It might seem like schadenfreude but in actuality she was looking forward to what level Akata could reach.

    She stood up and swept her gaze across the three of them. ¡°Good. Since you have agreed then I shall bestow upon you some gifts. These gifts were given by my father.¡± As she spoke she waved her hand and instantly three pills appeared in the air. The pills were a glossy pitch black and glittered with sparkling motes of white light as a cloudy aura wafted from it. Divine runes and magic incantations glittered the three pills and it looked extremely valuable.

    ¡°These are called Ancestral Awakening Pellets. Once consumed they will trace your bloodline and soul back to the Ancient Era. With that it will unlock your hidden potential even further and you will be much stronger than those on the same level as you. You could even fight those a whole Rank above you given the right situation.¡± As she spoke she tossed the pills into the mouths of the three without them even noticing.

    Instantly, Akata felt his blood and soul awakening. He could feel an ancient feeling coming from inside of his body as if he had come from ancient times. Just the aura alone frightened him greatly. He had never felt an aura so fearsome before and right now it was coming from his own body. He instantly sat down cross-legged and began to absorb the pill thoroughly.

    Not only him but Peizhi Xiuying and Huihe Ji too sat down and began to absorb the pill. Like this their bloodlines and souls were being traced back to ancient days and as it did they were becoming much more formidable. Even if they didn¡¯t attack, if they released the pressure from their bloodlines alone it would be enough to deter others from attacking.

    A full week passed by in the room before the three suddenly opened their eyes. Their gazes looked as if they had been around for countless aeons and with a single glance they could determine a person¡¯s Bloodline Limit.

    All three of their bloodlines were fully traced back to the Ancient Era.

    ¡°The Ancient Era is a mysterious point in time where everything was prosperous. Even the regular people that walked down the road back then with their cultivation levels are considered experts in my Red Dragon Cloud Palace now. From this it could be seen how strong people were back then. Therefore their bloodlines weren¡¯t simple. People now rarely have a bloodline from ancient times and if they do it¡¯s really faint.¡± Sect Leader Fu said.

    ¡°What are bloodlines?¡± Peizhi Xiuying asked suddenly.

    ¡°Bloodlines grant unique powers to those who have them. But there are different levels of bloodlines. These levels are called Bloodline Limits. Bloodline Limits are a way for you to measure how far back someone¡¯s bloodline can go. The further back it goes the stronger the bloodline. Bloodline Limits are classified by the period the bloodline came from.

    Bloodline Limits can be grouped together. The main Bloodline Limits are the Ten Eternal Bloodlines, the Hundred Void Bloodlines, the Thousand Origin Bloodlines, and the Ten Thousand Ancient Bloodlines. However, there is one more called the One True Bloodline which is the strongest Bloodline Limit there is. Just possessing that bloodline you could suppress every other bloodline there is without even making a move.

    These bloodlines derive from a source and time period within the Ancient Era and they are the First True Being from the True Era, the Ten Eternal Races from the Eternal Era, the Hundred Void Clans from the Void Era, the Thousand Origin Worlds Origin Era, and the Ten Thousand Ancient Palaces from the Ancient Era. Each bloodline comes from one of these Era¡¯s. The pill you just took traced your bloodline back to the Ancient Era. Even if you could find a pill to trace it back further it might not work because first you would have to try and awaken your bloodline to the previous era and then strengthen it. But not all bloodlines can be traced back further beyond the Ancient Era.¡± Sect Leader Fu spoke matter of factly.

    ¡°In any case you three are Dragon Knights and will do the secret mission in the war. I do hope you can complete it and live to keep on cultivating. I will gather you all a week before the war and have you make your preparations. When that time comes I will naturally tell you your mission and who your team will be. That is all for now, you will be living in this city until you have to begin your mission. Make the most of it.¡±

    With that Sect Leader Fu lead them out of the building and left them standing on the side of the road. The three of them looked up at the floating building. Who knows what they were thinking.

 Chapter 162: Noluck Returns

    Akata, Peizhi Xiuying, and Huihe Ji took a long look at the floating palace before walking off together. Their minds were racing with many thoughts at this moment.

    ¡°I advise you three to train together as much as you can to improve your abilities. There¡¯s a special arena where you three can train and cultivate in. Although you three are invincible in the First Rank, you will have to face many opponents in the Second Rank. Remember, your opponents won¡¯t show weakness when their life is on the line. You should be cruel to your enemies but even crueler to yourselves. Only in this way will you advance rapidly and steadily.¡± Sect Leader Fu¡¯s words resonated within the minds of the three.

    ¡°Ah! Training is a great idea. I want to become used to my new power as soon as possible. Would you two care to join me?¡± Huihe Ji spoke out excitedly. Through his repeated dealings with Sect Leader Fu, Huihe Ji had actually started to lose his own country talk.

    ¡°I was just thinking the same thing.¡± Akata and Peizhi Xiuying agreed as well. The three of them then made their way to the arena where they could exclusively train from prying eyes.

    After walking for an hour or so the three finally made their way to the arena. The arena was a building that was completely golden in color and it too floated in the air. Looking at the building the group could see three huge words written on the front. Dragon Knight Residence. After walking toward the teleportation pad and arriving inside the building, what greeted them was a magic construct.

    The construct looked to be made of wood but it was gold in color. It had a humanoid shape and from looking at it, it seemed to be indestructible. The construct walked toward the group of three and spoke in a fluid robotic tone.

    ¡°Hello. I am the guardian of this building, Dragonknight. You three are the only disciples permitted to enter this place. Here are your Dragon Knight Badges. Keep these on you at all times. There is a teleportation array built inside that will allow you to directly come here from anywhere in this city. Not only that but it will also lift the restrictions placed upon you and you will be able to use your cultivation in this city as you so please.¡± Dragonknight held out his hand where three simple badges laid within his palm.

    The three took the badges and inspected them. They looked plain and simple and was even made from regular wood. However, they could feel a profound array within the badges. On one side of the badge the word ¡®Dragon¡¯ appeared and on the other side the word ¡®Knight¡¯ was there. After inspecting the badges, the three quickly binded them to themselves.

    After they took the badges, Dragonknight showed them throughout the residence. It was truly grand. Not only did they get their own rooms, the rooms themselves were simply of the highest quality. Each room had its own cultivation area, bathroom, attendant, day and night cycle, as well as other things. It was as if each room was a world unto itself. And from their perspective it was a whole world. Their rooms were actually a new world filled with mountain ranges, palaces, and lakes. It was simply magnificent.

    After familiarizing themselves with their rooms the three then were shown the arena, the sole reason they actually came here. As soon as they saw the arena, however, none of them could keep a composed face. The arena was a wide open space that could be said to be endless. There were many different areas from deserts, oceans, forests, plains, mountains, marshes, and more.

    ¡°Waah! Why are there so many beasts roaming around? Isn¡¯t this supposed to be an arena? We should be fighting ourselves not other creatures.¡± Akata asked with confusion. Along with that confusion, however, there was endless admiration. It had to be said that to make such a place, an unknown amount of strength was needed. Akata truly admired the power that was capable of creating such an extravagant arena.

    ¡°Those ¡®beasts¡¯ you speak of are nothing more than magic constructs. They won¡¯t attack you on sight like regular beasts would since you hold those badges in your possession. With your badges, however, you can set the beasts to go on attack mode so that you can treat this arena as a true dangerous place to train. In attack mode the beasts will only target the person who set the attack mode, any other possessor of the badge will be safe unless they too set the beasts in attack mode.¡± Dragonknight spoke out and introduced the arena to the three.

    ¡°This arena is filled with many different environments and dangers that you can control with your badges so that you can increase the difficulty of your training as you so please. The constructs near us are quite weak, only at the Second Rank. The further in you go the stronger the constructs will become. This place would be considered a training paradise to the world.¡± Dragonknight quickly added as well.A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

    Turning his head to look at the three he also said a few more things. ¡°This is the entirety of the Dragon Knight Residence. Though it only a small part of the whole Red Cloud Palace City, it is still an exceptional place. In the future, you will find out just how much more impressive this place actually is. That is all. I shall take my leave now.¡± After he finished speaking, Dragonknight suddenly glowed with a bright red glow. It was so bright, Akata and the others couldn¡¯t keep their eyes open. After the light dimmed down Dragonknight was nowhere to be found.

    The three were left to take in the whole scene of the arena. They were truly dumbstruck at this moment. With a long sigh Huihe Ji finally ended the silence, ¡°This¡­ is truly much more than I expected from this sect. It could be said that I never expected to see this kind of strength from a sect in my life. I never even imagined a sect could reach this level. It¡¯s even more than what I thought the Divinity Sect could reach.¡± Endless admiration could be heard within his words.

    ¡°Divinity Sect? What¡¯s that?¡± Akata asked. He, who had been too weak to even cultivate didn¡¯t know much about the strong powers in the world. It could even be said that besides the beasts in the Great Aka Tribe, he didn¡¯t know much about any other strong powers.

    ¡°The Divinity Sect is the strongest power in our Divine Crystal Continent. It wouldn¡¯t be wrong to call them the overlords of this continent as they truly do rule it without any equal. They reside in the Heavenly Sovereign Empire and rule this land with overwhelming might. Master even told me that they don¡¯t lack any experts and any single person there could flatten our city with a wave of their hand. They¡¯re infinitely close to reaching the peak strength of this world and they don¡¯t lack people at the peak of the Fifth Rank¡± Huihe Ji spoke out and explained to Akata just what the Divinity Sect was.

    ¡°They¡¯re that strong?¡± Akata was simply amazed. To him at this moment the Fifth Rank was simply too far away. He hadn¡¯t even reached the Second Rank yet. Right now, Akata was remembering the might the fairy displayed at the Second Rank. He couldn¡¯t imagine the kind of might Fifth Rank cultivators could wield.

    ¡°Bah! Puny Fifth Rank cultivators. At my prime they were nothing before my might. A simple sneeze could blow one of them into a mist of blood. Even some immortals feared my prowess let alone regular mortals.¡± Noluck suddenly spoke up at this time and his first words in a while actually berated cultivators.

    ¡°Ah. You finally awaken at this time and the first thing you do is boast of your previous achievements. You were supposed to be helping me cultivate but only do you not help me you even cultivate by yourself. Truly not worth looking up to.¡± Akata couldn¡¯t be bothered paying attention to Noluck. During this whole time Noluck had been cultivating. He had once told Akata he would help him on his road to cultivation but up until now, it had been all of Akata¡¯s work and he hadn¡¯t helped at all. Although he couldn¡¯t make progress in regards to cultivation he could gain many insights. With all the things Akata had been through and witnessed, even he had gained new experiences and gained some insights.

    ¡°It¡¯s due to that azure vine that you now possess. I, myself, trained in the Inner Elements of Vines so I have plenty of knowledge regarding the matter, but compared to the intent within your vines mines are simply incomparable. It is truly wonderful. The destructive power it is capable of is simply terrifying to an extreme degree, something even I have never witnessed before. I gained quite a few insights regarding the destruction it was capable of. With how great of a sect this is, how could I possibly help you?¡± Noluck spoke in admiration and envy. He truly admired Akata¡¯s sect and wish he could be the one roaming within.

    ¡°So the azure vine helped you out?¡± Akata asked quite curiously. He too knew that Noluck couldn¡¯t do much compared to his sect at this moment so he just dropped the issue for now. ¡®If I understand correctly, my azure vine should have a bit of sentience. ¡°Noluck, are you able to inspect my azure vine closer and maybe connect to it? Perhaps you can help me control it better?¡± Akata asked.

    ¡°Hahahaha! If I could control that power, not to mention that fairy, even Second Rank cultivators in the mid Grades wouldn¡¯t be a match for us. But sadly it is too formidable. Maybe if you allow me to take over your plant arm perhaps I can do something.¡± Noluck spoke out.

    Akata then completely ignored him. He would absolutely not allow Noluck to take over his body no matter what. He didn¡¯t trust him at all.

    ¡®If only I had a way to let him fight however, having him by my side would indeed increase my strength a bit.¡¯ Akata thought. Even though he was immensely strong right now, he knew he was still weak in the grand scheme of things. He was constantly thinking of ways to improve his might. Ever since Noluck started residing in his body, Akata had been thinking of ways to use him.

    ¡®Hehehe. Who am I kidding trying to think of ways to summon a plant to fight for me. Who do I think I am? Peizhi Xiuying. She¡¯s really admirable. She isn¡¯t just a formidable combatant her plants aren¡¯t simple at all.¡¯ Akata praised in his mind.

    ¡®I remember helping her look for flowers back then. The Blood Lotus that can strengthen itself, the Five Elements Rose that can control some elements, and even the Illusory Phoenix Lily that can revive itself¡­¡¯ At first Akata was ridiculing himself but as he was his thoughts were going he trailed off at the end. A sudden idea came into mind. It was daring and if it succeeded then he could not only revive Noluck, he could actually control him.

    Without any further hesitation Akata looked at Peizhi Xiuying and asked, ¡°Peizhi Xiuying! You wouldn¡¯t happen to have an Illusory Phoenix Lily on you would you?¡± Within Akata¡¯s gaze could be seen some expectation.

    ¡°An Illusory Phoenix Lily? Yeah. After training for a while I made an effort to collect a bunch of plants and flowers to study them. Due to my efforts I¡¯m able to replicate them easily. They aren¡¯t as powerful as the real one¡¯s but they still are pretty much the same.¡± As she spoke she held out her hand and inside of her palm appeared a white bud. The white bud soon bloomed into the shape of a lily. Boundless life energy overflowed from it and just by looking one could tell that it was special.

    No doubt it was an Illusory Phoenix Lily.

 Chapter 163: Enchantment Grandmaster

    The white Illusory Phoenix Lily quickly changed colors as it took an an orange hue. It was a shocking orange that looked reminiscent of a sunset. As that happened even more life energy wafted from the flower in Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s hand.

    She picked up the flower with her other hand and inspected it briefly. After a while her face formed a pleasant smile that would cause one¡¯s heart to soften and she handed the flower over to Akata. ¡°Here you are. By the look on your face it seems like you really needed it.¡± Peizhi Xiuying let out a cute chuckle.

    ¡°Eh¡­ Yeah. Hehe.¡± Akata laughed embarrassedly as he rubbed the back of his head. ¡°I guess I was a bit too happy just now. But in any case, thanks! I¡¯ll surely pay you back.¡± Akata said full of excitement. He looked her in the eyes and smiled heavily. Without doing anything else he turned around and dashed down the hall towards his own room. Even though he was out of sight in a flash his voice still carried over from him yelling, ¡°I¡¯m going into seclusion so I¡¯ll train with you guys in a bit.¡±

    Huihe Ji and Peizhi Xiuying looked at each other and could only smile confusedly at each other.

    Within his own room, Akata immediately dashed towards an open field and sat down cross legged. He took out the Illusory Phoenix Lily that Peizhi Xiuying had made and gave it a long look before determination flashed within his eyes. ¡°This has to work! Hopefully there isn¡¯t much difference between the flowers Peizhi Xiuying makes and the ones¡¯ found in the real world.¡±

    ¡°What are you so flustered over?¡± Noluck couldn¡¯t tell why Akata was so uppity at this moment.

    ¡°I¡¯m planning on reviving you right now. If everything works out I can even have you fight with me. However, I need your full cooperation.¡± Akata didn¡¯t hide anything as he told his plans to Noluck.

    ¡°What?! You reviving me now? Impossible. There shouldn¡¯t be anything that allows a First Rank cultivator to revive me.¡± Noluck completely dismissed the notion. With his knowledge, he simply didn¡¯t believe Akata had the capabilities to revive him right now.

    Akata didn¡¯t respond, however, as he was entirely focused on his efforts. ¡®My plan is to merge Noluck¡¯s consciousness and soul into the Illusory Phoenix Lily. With the rebirth effect the Illusory Phoenix Lily has it should be able to completely revive him while giving him a new body.¡¯

    The plan sounded simple but in reality it was much more complicated. Akata held the Illusory Phoenix Lily in his plant arm. With a bit of concentration Akata transformed the azure vines to turn into a golden color. The gold vines then spread out to cover the flower in his palm. From the gold vines a profound energy wafted out. This energy was too powerful as it was on the same level as the azure vines destruction energy. The energy from the gold vines, however, wasn¡¯t that of destruction but more like creation.

    Swoosh! Akata rotated his soul rune as an intense crimson glow shot out from his body. With nothing but a thought the crimson light focused upon his palm that the Illusory Phoenix Lily was in. Akata was pouring in the profound power of creation and the power of his soul rune into the Illusory Phoenix Lily. With his powerful nature energy Akata guided the two energies to merge inside of the flower.

    By now, Akata realized what had sealed Noluck in his dantion region. It was obviously his soul rune. With Akata¡¯s insights into the Outer Element of Souls he had much more knowledge about what it was capable of doing. He found out that the soul rune restricted Noluck so that it couldn¡¯t harm him. Although he didn¡¯t know why it would do that, it was obviously a defensive mechanism. With such a mechanism, Akata didn¡¯t have to worry one bit about Noluck hurting him. But even though he didn¡¯t have to worry, he still didn¡¯t like him as much.

    Akata didn¡¯t have many powerful methods, in fact, it could be said that other than fighting, Akata had no other exceptional skills. In order to merge the outstandingly profound energies into the Illusory Phoenix Lily and use the power of rebirth within it, Akata could only think of one method¡­ runes. With his knowledge of runes, Akata was actually attempting to flawlessly fuse the three profound powers together within the flower so that he could give it Noluck. If Noluck were to be given this flower in his current form, it would undoubtedly cause his soul and consciousness to fuse with the flower and therefore once the flower began its rebirth, Noluck too would be reborn.

    Once Noluck saw what was happening even he couldn¡¯t remain calm anymore. ¡°Is¡­ Is he truly able to do this right now? Although if he does succeed, with how the flower operates I definitely wouldn¡¯t be near my peak strength, but I would be able to be reborn fresh and keep my memories. With my knowledge I could quickly rise in strength.¡± An expectant gaze appeared within his eyes that yearned for himself to walk the universe again.This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

    Akata was putting his full effort into creating this heaven-defying flower. But to complete it he had to make a completely complex rune that would be strong enough to control the three profound energies. Although Akata was a genius, he just hadn¡¯t learned much about runecrafting or any other method that could be used to merge the energies together with the flower. So, after a few attempts he eventually gave up.

    ¡°Looks like I can only stop right here. I have the method to revive you but not the strength or knowledge to go through with it.¡± Akata could only shake his head. He felt he was so close but he just wasn¡¯t able to make it all the way.

    ¡°No matter no matter. With your comprehension skills I¡¯ll bet that if you read a couple of books and learn a few more things you¡¯ll be able to complete this flower in no time at all. Then your efforts won¡¯t have to be in vain.¡± Noluck consoled Akata at this moment.

    ¡°You sure know how to lick somebody¡¯s boots clean! Just a few moments ago you even told me that what I was doing was impossible, yet now you praise my efforts. Humph.¡± Akata really couldn¡¯t be bothered with Noluck¡¯s style. All he cared for was himself and he simply would use others for his own benefits. Akata didn¡¯t like those kinds of people and even felt disgust. Although Akata planned to use Noluck in the future, it was only because he was going to revive him, he had to get something out of it.

    ¡°Aw don¡¯t say things like that. I just thought you were feeling discouraged and therefore needed some encouragement. I¡¯m only here to help¡­ ¡®since I can¡¯t do anything else.¡¯ Noluck murmured the last part to himself so only he could hear what he said. He saw that Akata was still displeased so he gave an awkward smile and said, ¡°How about I teach you about enchanting then? It¡¯s much more useful than simply only using runes when it comes to applying effects to items. Not only will you be able to make that flower you could even create other special oddities.¡±

    ¡®Enchanting? I never thought of this trade before. If I could learn to enchant I could create weapons, armors, and even special medicines.¡¯ Akata¡¯s mind was racing with thoughts related to enchanting. It could be seen that he quite liked this idea. But he wasn¡¯t going to make it seem like he was easy to coerce and manipulate. ¡°Oh¡­ you¡¯re skilled in enchanting?¡± Akata dodged the offer and asked his own question.

    ¡°Indeed I quite am. Enchanting could be called my greatest passion besides cultivating. Oh how I love it. Enchantments simply have endless possibilities. A simple piece of scrap metal could be transformed into a divine artifact capable of destroying a world. How amazing is that?!¡± Noluck expressed endless delight as he mentioned enchanting. It truly seemed as if it was his passion.

    ¡°Then what could you teach me then? Is it truly possible to complete the merging progress with enchantments?¡± Akata was more concerned over the merging of the profound energies than anything. If he could learn to enchant that would be good but his main focus would still be cultivating and becoming stronger.

    ¡°Bah! With my methods you could become a grandmaster of enchanting. Not only would you be able to complete the merging you could even do much more. Enchanting weapons and armor that could grow alongside you, creating indestructible metal, heck, you could even absorb attacks and make them into your own power, the possibilities are endless.¡± As Noluck spoke he became more and more ecstatic. If one could see his face clearly they would even notice that his eyes were shining with the light of joy.

    ¡°Then it¡¯s a deal. When can I start learning?¡± Akata had no reason to refuse. If enchanting could make him powerful in the future and also revive Noluck then what harm was there in learning it? Thus, he readily agreed to it.

    ¡°Hoho! We can start now. Being a grandmaster of enchanting myself I can pass on some knowledge to you. This world should have an enchantment table or room so we should head there immediately.¡± Noluck was practically jumping with joy. He never would have thought he could enjoy the pleasure of teaching someone about enchanting. Not only that, but this person came from a super sect so the materials they had were sure to be shocking.

    ¡°Mn.¡± Akata nodded his head. In his mind was a map of the whole city and with that map included the worlds that were within many of the buildings. Obviously there was a map of the world in Akata¡¯s room. With a thought Akata found the location of an enchantment room within his room. He walked there with light strides and an easygoing appearance. He wanted to enjoy this world that was his room.

    After arriving, Akata saw that the enchantment room was pretty large. In the room there were many shelves, tables, and chests within. Various books and ingredients were stored within and on top of the shelves, tables, and chests. The material that made up everything was absolutely not normal. It appeared to be a black stone yet it wasn¡¯t stone. A faint radiance shone from it and just by looking one could tell that it was extraordinary.

    After briefly sizing up the room Akata felt that it was interesting. He saw various ingredients such as blood from various beings, salts, ashes, crystals, and more. Different energies wafted from the ingredients and if one wasn¡¯t prepared for the sight of so many ingredients then one would be at a loss of what to do. And that was the case for Akata.

    ¡°Ahh! S¡­ s¡­ so many wonderful ingredients around! Look that¡¯s Soulfire Salts! Over there that¡¯s Petrid Fur! Wait wait wait¡­ It can¡¯t be¡­ is that actually Oblivion Fairy Bones?! That¡¯s not it¡­ there¡¯s actually even¡­ ¡± Shock was all throughout Noluck¡¯s voice as it rang out incessantly.

    After a bit of time waiting for Noluck¡¯s excitement to die down with no avail, Akata eventually got him back on track with a few shouts of his own.

    ¡°Okay okay. I did go a bit overboard but enchanting really is my passion in life. I¡¯ve never even seen some of these materials let alone work with them. First things first however, is that we have to get your knowledge up. Looking at you right now, you don¡¯t know what any of these ingredients and materials are which is quite sad actually.¡± Noluck said with intended sorrow in his voice.

    ¡°Why should I learn about ingredients and materials? Can¡¯t you just teach me how to enchant?¡± Akata didn¡¯t really want to go through all that trouble.

    ¡°Nonsense! Without a basic knowledge of the ingredients and materials you need to use how can you start enchanting? If you don¡¯t even know what to make your enchantments out of how could you create marvels? You¡¯re simply making a fool out of enchanters! Bah! You buffoon.¡± Noluck berated Akata for such careless words.

 Chapter 164: Natural Binding Enchantment Zone

    Akata was at a loss for words. He didn¡¯t get angry at Noluck berating him, instead he felt confusion. What was the big deal?

    ¡°In the world there are many similar materials and ingredients. Say for instance, the Soiled Earthbat Ears and the Windsoil Bat Ears. They look, feel, and even smell the exact same way. However, if you were making a Prismatic Sound Enchantment and used the Soiled Earthbat Ears instead of the Windsoil Bat Ears then you would cause a disastrous explosion that had the might of a Mid Grade Second Rank cultivator.¡± Noluck explained sensing that Akata was confused.

    ¡°So I should learn every single ingredient and material there is?¡± Akata definitely did not want to do that. First off, he didn¡¯t have the patience to do that. Secondly, even if he did have the patience, would he even be able to remember all of that?

    ¡°Of course you can¡¯t remember all of that you buffoon!¡± Berated Noluck once again. ¡°It¡¯s practically impossible to do that anyways, not even I have done that. I¡¯m not even close. What you should do is just memorize the basics. Once you have set a foundation you can do whatever you want from there.¡±

    Sensing that Akata was about to speak again he swiftly cut in. ¡°There¡¯s a book called the Master Enchanting Guide that can help you. It¡¯ll tell you about some materials that you should know about. It gives a detailed explanation on how to identify and use those certain materials and that is what you should memorize. Once you¡¯ve memorized that book then you could be considered an Apprentice Enchanter, after actually making an enchantment you could become a Master Enchanter.¡±

    ¡°So all I have to do is memorize a book?¡± Akata held his doubts but still went along with it. Since it was a book related to enchanting then surely it would be in this enchantment room. After briefly looking around the room, sure enough on a lonely shelf, Akata found a set of books that were quite tidy and emanated a strange feeling.

    There were six books in total and all but one had a special power emanating from it. These books were the Apprentice Enchanting Guide, Master Enchanting Guide, Grandmaster Enchanting Guide, Spirit Enchanting Guide, Soul Enchanting Guide, and the Immortal Enchanting Guide. The Apprentice Enchanting Guide was the only one that didn¡¯t have a special power that wafted from it.

    However, after examining them, Akata frowned. ¡°I can¡¯t open the Master Enchanting Guide book. There seems to be some special power that keeps me from opening it.¡±

    ¡°Eh? It seems to be¡­ Hohoho! This sect isn¡¯t simple at all!¡± Noluck seemed surprised and even somewhat intrigued by what he saw. Without waiting for Akata to question him he instantly began to explain. ¡°It seems your sect does indeed focus on foundation more than anything else. In this case you have to work for the knowledge in these books and set a foundation for yourself.¡± Noluck began to chuckle.

    Akata had his guesses at what Noluck meant but to confirm he still asked, ¡°Are you saying that I have to work my way up through the books in order to read them?¡± He could tell that he couldn¡¯t open any of the books but the Apprentice Enchanting Guide. Thus he could only learn from that at the moment.

    ¡°Hoho! It¡¯s not only that. The other books have a special seal on them that prevents you from opening them. The only way to open them is to actually make an enchantment on top of the book as a key. The enchantment has to be imbued with your power so even if others make the enchantment for you, the contents won¡¯t be showed to you, but to the person who opened it. If it¡¯s like this for enchantments I¡¯m sure it¡¯ll be like this for other professions such as runecrafting, alchemy, and whatnot.¡± Noluck was actually pleased by this.

    But when others felt joy, naturally there were some that felt frustration. Akata was naturally that person right now. He frowned even more deeply and opened up the Apprentice Enchanting Guide. Since all he could do to become a Master Enchanter was to go through the Apprentice Guide then there was nothing to be done. He could only comply and get it over with.

    He started reading the words within the book:The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

    The world of enchanting is as vast as the universe

    All great enchanters must start somewhere

    This book lists 10,000 common materials in enchanting

    One must first familiarize themselves with their feet before they begin to walk

    The same logic can be applied here

    Set a foundation and begin your everlasting journey

    Fanged Monkey: Beast species

    Fur: brown with green highlights; thick at the base but smooth at the tip; oily feel; extremely durable; smells of Firepeach Leaves with a hint of Yellowstone Barktrees; tastes like Fanged Monkey feces; Uses: Simple Armor Enchantment, Simple Speed Enchantment, Simple Night Vision¡­

    Feces: brown with multi-colored spots¡­ tastes like Fanged Monkey fur¡­

    Akata was immediately taken aback by the first entry the Fanged Monkey. He couldn¡¯t be more familiar with that beast but at this moment he couldn¡¯t help but twitch his eye. This book told him everything there was to know about a Fanged Monkey, even stuff he absolutely didn¡¯t want to know. It was extensive knowledge and very thorough. It was even to the fact that as Akata kept on reading he couldn¡¯t help but be slightly interested. Not at the weird facts, but at the general information the book provided him.

    The book didn¡¯t just tell him about the materials, it told him about their origins, weaknesses, uses, habits¡­ all of that was explained within the book. Yet what astounded Akata even more was that this was just the apprentice-level book. There was still much more knowledge hidden within the other books. And based off the power they were emitting, the information they probably provided was even more valuable than this one.

    Absorbed in the knowledge of the book, Akata simply found a place to sit and continued to read all of it. Things he didn¡¯t understand or felt like he didn¡¯t completely retain the knowledge of he would go over again and again until he felt like he could remember it. Thus, in this situation. a day had passed unknowingly. In this day, Akata completely remembered the contents of the Apprentice Enchanting Guide. Even though it was 10,000 materials Akata had to go through, he felt as if he still hadn¡¯t seen enough. He was ready to indulge himself in more knowledge.

    Sensing how antsy Akata was pick up another book Noluck called out to him. ¡°Ah you gifted brat, don¡¯t forget that to open the next book you must complete the required enchantment.¡±

    Only after hearing those words did Akata remember that his goal was to become a Master Enchanter. The reason it was only a Master Enchanter was that was the minimum requirement for Akata to complete the merging of the powers in the Illusory Phoenix Lily. He was already close to completing it with his superficial knowledge regarding runes so it was only a bit of trouble to complete. A Master Enchanter was sufficient.

    ¡°That¡¯s right, how do I enchant? The book only told of various materials but didn¡¯t really explain how to enchant.¡± Akata now realized he had another headache.

    ¡°Bah! You got an enchanter right with you. I can teach you my method of enchanting and have you use that. Heh. My technique is truly profound and other than me, nobody else knows it. It could be seen as your good luck to be given such a fine technique.¡± Noluck quite boldy liked flaunting his achievements.

    Akata couldn¡¯t be bothered with his boasting so he just rolled his eyes and got right to the point. ¡°Yeah Yeah, how about you teach me this technique then so that I can hurry and revive you.¡± Akata said a bit impatiently. Although he said it like that, he truly wanted to hurry and get to the next book. If the things in the next book were even better than the first book then it would simply be like handing a jadeslip of all his enemies weaknesses that he could utilize. Not only that but the wonders that enchantments could create were simply unimaginable. Akata truly wished he could create magnificent wonders on his own. So he was a bit impatient.

    ¡°Hohoho! Look who¡¯s eager to learn some more.¡± Although Akata tried to hide his anticipation well, how could it escape the eyes of Noluck? He smugly smiled and then continued, ¡°Fine I won¡¯t hold you back from your knowledge quest any longer. Here¡¯s the method that I use to create enchantments. It¡¯s been continuously refined by me after all these years and it¡¯s almost at perfection.¡±

    With a thought, a green beam of light enveloped Akata¡¯s figure as a vast amount of information flooded within his mind. The information was too vast and profound and a searing sharp pain came upon Akata in an instant. That couldn¡¯t be helped, however, as the transference of full techniques was not something easily done.

    After the initial pain appeared it was gone within the next few breaths. Akata steadied his bearing and as the information was flowing within his mind, he was actually shocked. It was truly too profound of a technique.

    Natural Binding Enchantment Zone

    Nature energy locks down an area, within that area all energy is converted into pure elemental energy that supports the enchantment being made

    One can then make an enchantment where one so chooses and no longer has to be around an enchantment table

    Akata quickly read through his mind and, the more he read, the more astounded he became. After reading through the Apprentice Enchanting Guide, although it didn¡¯t give him any methods of enchanting it did say one fact: you NEED an enchantment table. This was because enchantment tables were essential tools when creating enchantments. They were special in that they converted the energy needed to supply an enchantment. Without that energy, an enchantment was nothing more than a bunch of materials.

    But the Natural Binding Enchantment Zone completely dismissed that idea. It made it so one could make an enchantment on the go and didn¡¯t even need an enchantment table. They could simply use nature energy to convert the elemental energy in the surroundings and use that to supply the enchantment. From this, it could be seen how amazing of a technique this was.

 Chapter 165: Enchanting the Expert

    ¡°Hehe. Well? What do you think about it?¡± Noluck said smugly. He was confident in his technique that he created, it was his most proud work to date and he was absolutely fond of it.

    ¡°It truly is profound. It brings along a new concept of enchanting and if it were released in the world it would truly cause a spectacle. This technique is simply priceless.¡± Akata didn¡¯t know much about enchanting but from the profundity of the technique and what he knew about enchanting, he could tell that it was an amazing technique. So, even Akata had to admit that it was an incredible technique.

    ¡°Hohoho! Of course it is because I made it! My Natural Binding Enchantment Zone ability is sought after in the world. Countless experts want to get their hands on it but it just so happens that I was powerful enough to keep it within my grasps.¡± Noluck praised himself once again.

    ¡°Now I¡¯m going to teach you how to identify enchantments and construct them.¡± Without stopping, Noluck began to speak again. ¡°Enchantments are broken into 3 paths, the Saint Path, the Fiend Path, and the Transcendent Path. Enchantments made from the Saint Path benefit people, whether giving strength or speed. It is a path of the righteous. The Fiend Path isn¡¯t necessarily bad but the enchantments made from this path detriment people, such as absorbing attacks or messing with one¡¯s senses.

    The Transcendent Path, however, is completely different from the other two paths. It is a path that is above that of Saints and Fiends and is impartial to the effects of an enchantment. It is mysterious and is seen as a legend. I haven¡¯t ever come across an enchantment that was formed from the Transcendent Path and have only heard stories about them. But, from what I heard, if they do exist then they are able to create wondrous effects. From offsetting time and space to providing energy for whole universes. If they are really out there I hope to be able to make my own one day.¡± If Noluck had a clear face at this moment, his eyes would undoubtedly be shining right now.

    After a bit of awe, Noluck went right back to explaining. ¡°As I¡¯m sure you have guessed, the Enchanting Paths and the Elemental Paths are connected. To put it simply, to create an enchantment from the Saint Path you need to use elements from the Saint Path, to create an enchantment from the Fiend Path you need to use elements from the Fiend Path. Materials are objects that have those elements gathered within them. Some materials have dense amounts of elements while others have special properties.¡±

    Akata became shocked hearing this. ¡®I knew there were two paths on the Elemental Tree, the Saint Path and the Fiend Path. But I didn¡¯t know there was actually a third, the Transcendent Path. My new element doesn¡¯t seem to connect to the Saint or Fiend Path, could it be from the Transcendent Path then?¡¯ While listening to Noluck speak, Akata caught onto a piece of interesting information. He quickly stored that info and kept it in the back of his mind to look into later.

    ¡°To identify an enchantment only takes a glance for me. Enchantments are a lot like runes in that that are made of a core. The core is what determines an enchantments¡¯ quality and uses. The more complex and/or profound a core is, the higher the quality and the more uses. It isn¡¯t even impossible to mix cores together and create multiple enchantments and form them into one. However, even though cores can be different, one thing can¡¯t change about an enchantment. Because of this one thing it is possible to identify an enchantment.¡± Noluck instantly got louder.

    ¡°What is that one thing?¡± Akata was actually curious about this topic. It had to be said that at first he wasn¡¯t even interested in enchantments but after learning about them he became generally intrigued.

    Noluck noticed this and so he intentionally dragged on his explanation. ¡°Hehe. That is¡­ it¡¯s elemental properties. The elemental properties that makes up an enchantment have to be perfect for it to work. For example, the Prismatic Sound Enchantment is made up of the Inner Element of Sounds from the Fiend Path and Core Element of Wind. Countless enchantments use just these two elements to make themselves, but only the Prismatic Sound Enchantment uses 80% sound element and 20% wind element. That is how you identify enchantments. It can also be seen that since the majority of the elements used come from the Fiend Path, the Prismatic Sound Enchantment is a Fiend Enchantment.¡± Noluck felt pleased after showing his knowledge.

    ¡°So that¡¯s how it is.¡± Akata seemed to come to a whole new realization after hearing Noluck. Akata¡¯s knowledge greatly expanded upon learning about enchantments from Noluck. Even if he didn¡¯t want to, Akata felt grateful for Noluck¡¯s actions. ¡°Thank you Noluck. I will remember this and surely repay it back¡±Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

    ¡°Ah enough of that, it¡¯s what I should have done. You¡¯re already helping me by trying to revive my body and whatnot. Besides, I¡¯m an expert so this is nothing to me. Now follow my instructions and I¡¯ll guide you through the enchanting process. First thing, first we should train you to create the perfect balance of elements within the Natural Binding Enchantment Zone. You have to attune yourself to the elements and only gather the right elements and the necessary amount of each element. Try gathering the sound element and wind element in a perfect 4:1 ratio.¡± Noluck said.

    Akata first sighed at Noluck¡¯s boasts and then focused his mind on the task at hand. With guidance from Noluck he began to set up the enchantment zone.

    Nature energy surged from Akata. At this point in time, Akata¡¯s Nature Sense was immensely powerful. Only Second Rank cultivators could compare to him in this field. With Nature Sense he could summon nature energy and use it. Thus, not only did he have and abundant amount of nature energy, even his control of it was flawless.

    A dome-shaped ¡®room¡¯ formed from nature energy appeared around Akata. The room was small as it was only 3 meters in diameter and 1.5 meters tall. Within this room, nature energy filled every ounce of the place. This was the enchantment zone.

    Swish swish! Akata¡¯s hands flashed repeatedly as he formed many complex hand signs in rapid succession. The nature energy that filled up the room started to tremble as a powerful pressure emanated from it. Akata closed his eyes at this moment.

    Through his Nature Sense, Akata felt as if he could feel countless amounts of elements in the surroundings. He could sense the fire element, soul element, time element, leaf element, star element, etc. With a thought, Akata channeled his intentions through the nature energy and as he did, a vortex formed on top of the dome and sucked in some of these elements.

    ¡°Good good. Now focus only on the sound and wind element. Remember, 80% of this room needs to be filled with the Inner Element of Sounds while 20% needs to be the Core Element of Wind. Any other elements should be expelled from this zone. It¡¯s extremely difficult to do so don¡¯t worry if you can¡¯t succeed.¡± Noluck consoled Akata before he began.

    In truth, Noluck didn¡¯t believe Akata would succeed. His technique was so profound and its requirements were harsh to utilize. Not only did one need exceptional control of their nature energy, one also needed exceptional sensitivity. Only by sensing the right elements and controlling your nature energy to draw them in could someone use this technique. Noluck didn¡¯t think Akata truly met these criteria so at this moment he was just training Akata, getting him used to this technique.

    Not only Noluck thought this, even Akata wasn¡¯t truly confident that he could succeed right now. This technique was really profound and complicated. He knew the requirements were high and even he didn¡¯t think he could pass them at this moment. But that was just because he had never tried to use his nature energy and sensitivity like this before. With his strength, he knew he could eventually do it given enough time, but as of right now, he wasn¡¯t sure.

    What Akata and Noluck didn¡¯t know, however, was that Akata already had the qualifications to use this technique. His Nature Sense and energy could only be matched by plant cultivators in the Second Rank. His control of it was exceptional as well. Back when he took the Eighth Cabin Trial he had awakened his Divine Sense, and at that time it was even stronger than some Second Rank cultivators. Thinking about it, his Nature Sense had always been much stronger than his divine sense. This alone, showed how exceptional it was.

    In terms of sensitivity, Akata even managed to comprehend Soul Foresight. Soul Foresight and Nature Sense couldn¡¯t even be compared on the same level as each other. Nature Sense could be seen as rare but was still a regular sensing ability, however, Soul Foresight was a heavenly ability that most people hadn¡¯t even heard of before. It¡¯s sensing capabilities were so profound and accurate that those that have heard of it knew that it could even tell the future! It was simply amazing and couldn¡¯t be described in normal terms.

    With these things, Akata absolutely had the capabilities to use the Natural Binding Enchantment Zone.

    Akata didn¡¯t even need to use his Soul Foresight as, just with his Nature Sense, he was able to find the sound and wind element out of the countless other elements. Using his powerful nature energy he slowly and steadily gathered the sound and wind element while expelling the other elements from the zone. With his immense sensitivity, Akata gathered the two elements in a perfect 4:1 ratio.

    Noluck was extremely surprised by this and looked at Akata in a new light. He began to explain to Akata how to form cores and then make the enchantment.

    To Akata, the hard part was already done with. Not to mention forming an apprentice-level core that was meant for First Rank cultivators, Akata was even capable of combining runes together which was something only geniuses that had Second Rank insights were capable of doing. After a bit of time Akata eventually made the Prismatic Sound Enchantment.

    The enchantment glittered with a violet light. One could tell by looking that it was a top-class enchantment. Noluck was astonished once again. ¡®He actually made a top-class enchantment on his first try. Not even I was capable of doing this when I first started enchanting. How monstrous is this guy¡¯s abilities?¡¯ He thought to himself in wonder.

    ¡°Is this good enough?¡± Akata asked at a loss. He didn¡¯t really know much about enchantments still. All he knew at this moment was that he had actually made one. He didn¡¯t know about it¡¯s quality or if it even worked well.

    ¡°Hohoho! Good enough? Heh. See for yourself.¡± Noluck laughed out.

 Chapter 166: Monster Enchanter

    Akata was no fool. In fact, he couldn¡¯t even be considered a genius either. He was much more talented than those so-called geniuses around the world. Although he didn¡¯¡¯t know if his enchantment was good enough, he knew that he had succeeded in making one. With that, his mind instantly went to work to improve his skills. Countless ideas were forming within his mind as he was currently thinking about how to advance in this field faster.

    The Prismatic Sound Enchantment glittered resplendently. It looked like a rune but fundamentally it wasn¡¯t one at all. While both were made from cores and had similar outer appearances, the inner workings and uses of them were completely different.

    A rune was meant for short-term work, meaning it was used mostly for combat purposes directly. Enchantments, on the other hand, were meant to increase a person¡¯s strength in the long-term. For instance, a fire rune could be made and, no matter what its purpose was, it would transform into fire. However, there wasn¡¯t such a thing as just a fire enchantment. Enchantments had to be given orders. A fire enchantment could be ordered to increase fire resistance, boost fire-related attacks, nullify fire in a certain area. There were many things enchantments could do with fire as the basis. This was what made them fundamentally different from runes.

    Runes were meant for offensive and defensive measures in combat or other similar areas. Enchantments were support items. This was why enchanting was seen as a profession, much like how pill concocting, alchemy, and artificing were seen as professions.

    Akata wanted to become great in this field and therefore he decided to put his all into it. His mind was swarming with different methods to make and use enchantments.

    ¡®I never knew enchanting could be this broad. There¡¯s simply no end to all the possibilities enchanting can bring. I¡¯ll learn a lot more once I start using many different enchantments.¡¯ With a thought Akata brought the Prismatic Sound Enchantment that was in the air in front of him. With a flash of light, the enchantment embedded itself into Akata¡¯s black cloak.

    Enchantments weren¡¯t like runes where they could be used immediately after creation. They first had to be put into an item so as to channel its power through that item to be used. The core of the enchantment was actually a sort of formation. This formation would imprint itself onto the item and then draw in energy from the surroundings to power itself. Once this was done it could no longer be changed. If you wanted to improve or change it you would have to destroy the previous enchantment and then make a new one, or just add a whole new one altogether.

    The Prismatic Sound Enchantment imprinted itself on Akata¡¯s cloak and as it did a symbol suddenly formed on it. This symbol matched the core designs of the Prismatic Sound Enchantment. After a brief moment, the symbol flashed and then disappeared.

    ¡°Channel your energy into your cloak and once you do feel for the enchantment, try to activate it and see what happens.¡± Noluck began to pay close attention to see what Akata was doing.

    Without delay, Akata began to gather his energy onto his cloak. It didn¡¯t really matter what energy Akata used on his cloak, as long as it possessed might. Because of this he could use divine energy, nature energy, or even energy from his bloodline. But energy such as mental energy didn¡¯t have might, as it could only affect him and not the outside world.

    The Prismatic Sound Enchantment symbol flashed on Akata¡¯s cloak and as it did a wave of energy swept out of it. That wave of energy swept out more than 500 meters in an instant and kept on increasing in range. Each time that wave passed some place, Akata would become astonished. That was because he would be able to hear everything in the circumference of that wave. Eventually the wave stopped expanding, at this point it had reached 1,000 meters out. Within these thousand meters, Akata could hear everything that was going on. Not that there was much going on anyways since it was his room.

    He could hear the air whistling, the leaves rustling, the branches swaying, the grass waving, and even footsteps of the various magic constructs in the area. It was a whole new level of hearing for Akata and he was greatly astonished by it.

    ¡°Is this the power of the Prismatic Sound Enchantment? It¡¯s simply amazing. I can hear everything within 1000 meters of me.¡± Akata praised.

    ¡°Ah it¡¯s just a measly 1000 meters. Once your strength enhances and you¡¯re able to wield more powerful energy this enchantment will be able to let you hear everything within a thousand miles.¡± Noluck said with complete confidence.Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.

    While being astonished was being astonished, Akata knew he couldn¡¯t just play around with the enchantment all day. Eventually he set his mind on the enchantment he had to make in order to open the Master Enchanting Guide.

    The enchantment on top of the book was truly top-tier. It was one of the best enchantments that an Apprentice Enchanter could make. But even so, Akata didn¡¯t feel like it was all that impossible to make.

    After a bit of preparation and adjustments to his Natural Binding Enchantment Zone, Akata gathered the elements needed to make the enchantment, and used his amazing sensitivity to control the elements as he wished.

    Although he was a genius, he wasn¡¯t a miracle man. Akata did fail a couple of times making the enchantment but each time he failed he would gain many more new insights. Thus, his success rate would improve substantially after each failure. After only failing two times, on the third try, Akata succeeded in making the enchantment.

    This enchantment was called the Master Key Enchantment. It served no other purpose than to open things that were locked. Akata willed the enchantment to be placed on the Master Enchanting Guide book. When it was placed the book trembled slightly and then shone with a white light. The light covered over Akata and then disappeared. When the light disappeared the Master Key Enchantment was destroyed.

    Akata picked the book up and inspected it again. He found out that it looked to still be locked. He placed his hand on top to try and pull the cover open. A white light sprang up from the book and washed over Akata once again. It¡¯s speed was truly too fast. As Akata was about to pull open the locked cover the light came and vanished, when it vanished the book had unlocked. It was truly a weird mechanism.

    Seeing that the book was now open to him, Akata was extremely giddy. He began to earnestly read the contents of the book. Like this, a few days passed by in the blink. There was plenty of information in the book that kept Akata occupied. There were even some actual enchantment techniques that Akata could train in.

    After practising with some master-level enchantments, Akata felt as if he had a good enough grasp on enchanting. Taking what he now learned and applying it to his goal of reviving Noluck, Akata began to make a new enchantment.

    Since he already had a basis of what he wanted to do, it wasn¡¯t that hard to figure out what enchantment to make. It was a Soul Assimilation Enchantment. This would allow Noluck¡¯s soul to fuse with the Illusory Phoenix Lily. In addition to the Soul Assimilation Enchantment, Akata also had to make a Conscious Awakener Enchantment, Divine Energy Gathering Enchantment, Nature Energy Gathering Enchantment, and a Life Preservation Enchantment. These were just the master-level enchantments he had to make. In addition to these, Akata also had to make many apprentice-level enchantments.

    Creating all of these enchantments took plenty of time. A whole day was needed. Akata had to use materials in the enchantment room to gather the energy needed for some of the enchantments. He also failed making some enchantments but eventually he succeeded. Like this, his knowledge and skills in making enchantments rose by leaps and bounds. He could fully be considered a Master Enchanter now.

    Over ten enchantments floated in front of Akata at the moment. Akata¡¯s face was slightly pale but a smile could still be seen on it. He was truly happy with his work. It had taken a lot longer than he had planned but he finally had the capabilities to revive Noluck.

    ¡®Amazing. This kid just started learning about enchanting a few days ago, yet he¡¯s already at the level of a Master Enchanter. Usually one doesn¡¯t reach that level until they step into the Second Rank. How monstrous is this kid. He simply more than a genius!¡¯ Noluck was utterly shocked watching Akata. Akata had completely gotten used to enchantments and even stopped asking him for help. Akata¡¯s skills were pretty much all self taught.

    ¡°Now I can begin.¡± Akata held the Illusory Phoenix Lily in his palm once more. The golden vines wrapped around it, giving it a feeling of boundless creation energy. With a thought, his soul rune spun around rapidly, giving off boundless soul energy.

    ¡°Noluck, you have to follow my plans otherwise this won¡¯t work. I¡¯ll use my soul energy to guide you to the Illusory Phoenix Lily. Once you make it there, I¡¯ll seal you within and work to keep your life and consciousness intact. My part is easy but your part is much more difficult. You have to gather all the energy that you can into the flower and reconstruct it from the inside to make it your own body. Once you¡¯ve completed that all you have to do is wait for the revival process to begin.¡±

    Without saying another word, Akata began the reviving process. Using his soul energy, Akata guided Noluck to the Illusory Phoenix Lily that was sitting within the palm of his plant arm. Golden vines covered the flower and a boundless aura of creation entered inside of it. Once Noluck made it inside, Akata instantly became much more focused.

    Woosh, woosh, woosh! The many enchantments that Akata made shot toward the flower in his palm. In an instant, the enchantments imprinted themselves on the flower, creating many symbols. In truth, these symbols had a name, they were called Enchanting Symbols and a person can identify an enchantment just by looking at them.

    The Enchanting Symbols glittered on the surface of the flower. Divine energy and nature energy flowed toward the flower and formed a vortex above it. The two energies were drawn into the flower where they would help Noluck in preserving his power to reconstruct the inside of the flower.

    At this point in time everything was going smoothly. The flow of energy was steady and nothing amiss was happening. Given half an hour, Noluck would have finished the reconstruction and would just have to wait for the flower to die and revive itself, thus giving Noluck a new body to his own.

    ¡°Crap! Akata, my soul energy isn¡¯t enough to fully take over this flower. Help! Help! This flower my just take over my soul! If it does then I will definitely die!¡± Although Noluck didn¡¯t like to ask for help, he was practically begging Akata right now.

    ¡°What?! Your soul energy isn¡¯t enough? It¡¯s going to take over your soul?¡± How could Akata not panic either? He was putting his all into this so he could revive Noluck, of course he wouldn¡¯t want anything to go wrong.

    Using his Soul Foresight he cast his perception into the Illusory Phoenix Lily. Upon looking in it his face changed. ¡°This¡­¡± He was at a loss.

 Chapter 167: Twists and Turns

    ¡°Hurry! Do something!¡± Noluck begged and pleaded.

    Akata quickly cast his Soul Foresight into the Illusory Phoenix Lily to inspect it. ¡°This¡­ ¡° Upon inspection, Akata¡¯s face changed greatly. He was at a complete loss.

    Noluck¡¯s soul was being devoured by the power of the Illusory Phoenix Lily. In fact, to be more precise, it was being devoured by the power Peizhi Xiuying put into the Illusory Phoenix Lily. In order to make it as authentic to the real flower, Peizhi Xiuying used some of her insights into the Outer Elements to connect the Outer Element of Life to the Illusory Phoenix Lily. Her actions wouldn¡¯t have been a problem if one was planning to use the flower regularly. The only issue would be if someone with a weak soul was attempting to take over the flower. And Noluck was precisely trying to do that.

    It wasn¡¯t that the Outer Element of Life was harming Noluck, it was just that Peizhi Xiuying wasn¡¯t able to control her power well enough. Due to that, the Outer Element of Yin happened to pour into the flower as well. The yin element was extremely cold and had a strong corroding effect. Noluck, who was really weak at the moment, couldn¡¯t resist this corrosion effect and therefore his soul was being devoured by it.

    Because of all of this, Akata was faced with a huge problem. The yin element had devoured much of Noluck¡¯s soul. It wouldn¡¯t be possible for him to assimilate on his own, even if the yin element stopped devouring his soul right now. Akata would have to help through this process, but if he was careless at any moment then he could potentially harm Noluck¡¯s soul further.

    Without delay, Akata immediately surged his Soul Foresight, soul and nature energy into the Illusory Phoenix Lily. While nature energy was the main factor in helping Noluck at this moment, due to him being a plant cultivator, Akata didn¡¯t want to take any risks regarding his control of it. In terms of control, Akata could control his soul energy the best. That was because he had his soul rune as back up which brought immense benefits to Akata¡¯s soul.

    With his top-class perception and outstanding control, Akata began to help Noluck. He didn¡¯t plan to eradicate the yin element, as it still had a purpose. The soul energy and nature energy it had contained within was greatly beneficial for Noluck.

    Akata¡¯s crimson soul rune spun around rapidly as he concentrated further. Crimson light radiated from Akata¡¯s figure and as it did, it washed over the flower in his palm. The light entered the flower and as soon as it appeared, it was as if it were the sovereign of the flower. Noluck became frightened by this scene and began to back away. But the light didn¡¯t allow him to.

    Almost as soon as it entered the Illusory Phoenix Lily it shot over to Noluck¡¯s misty figure. As it shot toward it, a weird event happened. The crimson light actually fused with Noluck¡¯s figure. When it fused, Akata could feel a whole new connection to Noluck.

    ¡°What is this?¡± Akata was greatly shocked. Everything had happened too fast for even him to notice it. By the time he noticed what was going on, he already felt a weird connection to Noluck. It was the same kind of connection he felt with his scythes when the symbols appeared on them. It was as if, by some strange occurrence, Noluck became apart of him.

    The light didn¡¯t stop there, however, as it soon expanded. It encompassed the whole flower and began to fuse everything together. With his Soul Foresight, Akata was able to see the whole process clearly. The crimson light was doing more than just fusing everything together, it was creating a single entity.

    What this meant was that everything within the flower, whether it was an element, divine energy, nature energy, soul energy, or even Noluck¡¯s remaining life, were being fused via the soul. They were truly becoming one, and the core of that soul was naturally Noluck.

    When everything was fully fused together, the crimson rune stopped spinning and the light vanished in an instant. The whole process happened in less than the blink of an eye. It was too shocking.

    Not to mention Noluck, even Akata was at a loss for what just happened. After a few breaths passed by in silence between the two, Akata eventually shook his head and lightly laughed. He knew this rune was mysterious and everytime it acted, something amazing would happen. This time, it really didn¡¯t disappoint.Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

    ¡°Noluck, I¡¯m not sure what happened, but it seems that everything was a success.¡± Akata laughed. ¡°Let¡¯s not dwell on this matter and just rejoice that everything is alright.¡±

    If Akata didn¡¯t even know what happened then there was no reason to ask anything. Noluck just calmly accepted the fact that everything was well now.

    In fact, it was even better than the method they had been going for. Noluck had fully fused with the Illusory Phoenix Lily, and it was a perfect fusion. It was almost as if he had been born from this body.

    Looking at the Illusory Phoenix Lily in his palm, Akata noticed a crimson symbol on its surface. It happened to be different symbol than the one¡¯s on his scythes yet it was also a bit similar. It gave off a familiar feeling to Akata as if it was a part of him somehow.

    ¡°I wonder.¡± Akata mused to himself briefly. Then, with a thought, a crimson light appeared and flashed by. Looking again, the Illusory Phoenix Lily had vanished from his palm. ¡°Hahaha. I thought that might happen.¡± Akata beamed a bright smile.

    ¡°Wha¡­ Where is this place?¡± Noluck was astonished. Around him was a dark space yet, it wasn¡¯t empty. He could see any different colored symbols floating around. They all emitted a pure power yet what caught his attention were three distinct symbols. These symbols were much more powerful and dominating than the other symbols. As for their appearances? They looked to be just like runes.

    ¡°Is that¡­¡± Noluck¡¯s face became pale with fright. He looked upon one particular rune and fear instantly swept through his soul. This rune was crimson, it was precisely Akata¡¯s soul rune that Noluck was looking at right now. That was because he was within Akata¡¯s soul region. The many colored symbols floating around were all imprinted rune cores within Akata¡¯s soul region. The most prevalent had to be a shining purple rune. This was the first rune core Akata had imprinted. The illusory rune core.

    ¡°Noluck so that is your true appearance.¡± A voice suddenly echoed throughout the space. Turning his head, Noluck saw a familiar figure walking over to him. It was precisely Akata.

    Akata looked at Noluck closely. He had a human figure with odd parts. His skin was orange and his eyes were a bright green. On his arms and legs, green vines could be seen. Yet, those vines seemed to have life to them, almost as if they were snakes or a coiling dragon. Yet, Akata didn¡¯t pay too close attention as he soon closed his eyes and turned his head away. That was because Noluck was currently naked.

    With the perfect fusion between Noluck and the Illusory Phoenix Lily, Noluck gained full control of the powers the flower had. At first, he would¡¯ve had to wait for the revival of the flower in order to be revived, but now, he was able to start the revival process at will. The process wasn¡¯t that complicated at all. It merely shed its outer layer and left the inner layer to grow. The whole process happened in a blink. Within that inner layer, Noluck appeared. What was disappointing, however, was that the flower could only revive itself once. Since Noluck already used it he basically had this one life.

    Seeing Akata, Noluck wasn¡¯t the least bit distant. He immediately ran up to Akata and kneeled down to the ground. ¡°You have kept your promise and even saved my life. I am eternally grateful to you for what you have done for me. In the future, I will do all I can to help you, even if it means putting my life on the line. I will do this without hesitation of the consequences, for you have helped me greatly.¡±

    To Akata¡¯s surprise Noluck actually wanted to serve him. His face filled with shock. A mighty figure that used to be an immortal actually wanted to be his servant now. Who wouldn¡¯t be shocked by that? Before Akata could say anything, however, Noluck continued on.

    ¡°Back in the day, I was a mighty figure, an immortal. I considered myself a genius and all those below me were trash. I was brave and stubborn. I decided to go through my tribulation to increase my strength at a fast rate, but I had greatly underestimated its power, and for that, I paid the price. In order to preserve my life for a chance at living I used a forbidden technique only plant cultivators could use and I spread my life in the surrounding area. However, I didn¡¯t think that even my comprehension of the technique was so shallow that I couldn¡¯t even spread my life properly. I lost all hope of being able to revive. But then I met you.¡±

    At this point in time Noluck¡¯s eyes were shining. ¡°You¡¯re the greatest genius I have ever seen or even heard of in my life. Your strength, perception, comprehension, character, they are all above the level of geniuses at your age. Your potential is limitless and even your future will be filled with glory. I wish to continue on the path of cultivation but I don¡¯t wish to be meager. I want to follow you so that I can experience your journey with you. I won¡¯t take no for an answer and I will follow you regardless.¡± Noluck¡¯s eyes were firm.

    Hearing all of this how could Akata reject his firm intentions. Even if he were to reject, he felt like Noluck would still follow him anyways. It was better to accept the goodwill than to reject it in this case.

    ¡°Eheheh. I¡¯ve always wanted a companion with me. But you won¡¯t be a servant to me. Instead we can be partners or a team.¡± Akata suggested.

    ¡°Ahaha! Great. I wouldn¡¯t want to have it any other way.¡± Noluck beamed. He didn¡¯t care if he was a servant or a partner. As long as he got to travel with Akata it would all be great.

    ¡°Now now. First thing we should do is get you some clothes.¡± Akata laughed awkwardly.

    Up until this point, Noluck had been ecstatic. But, after hearing Akata¡¯s words his face became confused. He looked down at his body and soon his face turned from orange to red. With a quick wave of his hand, power burst forth and the power gathered into the appearance of a robe. With that, Noluck quickly put on the robe in an embarrassed manner

    Akata was a bit shocked. The power Noluck wielded wasn¡¯t simple. It actually contained some powerful might. The might of which wasn¡¯t inferior to First Moon when he came to wreck havoc on the sect. In fact, it was greater than First Moon!

    ¡°High Second Rank cultivator!¡± Akata was shocked.

 Chapter 168: No Sword, Yin, or Life

    At this moment, Akata found out that Noluck possessed the cultivation of the Mid Second Rank. Cultivation Ranks were divided into 10 Grades. Each Grade would increase a cultivators strength but here were also gaps between Grades that showed strength. These gaps were called the Low, Mid, High, and Peak Ranks.

    Low ranged from the 1st Grade to the 3rd Grade. People with these cultivations were considered to have low abilities within the Rank. Then came Mid which ranged from the 4th Grade to the 6th Grade. High ranged from the 7th Grade to the 9th Grade and Peak ranged from the 10th Grade to the Halfstep.

    Being Low Ranked or Mid Ranked was okay. But once someone stepped into the High Rank then that meant that they were only a few more Grades away from the next Rank. Those people would be seen as strong figures and people wouldn¡¯t look down on them depending on the region.

    The most powerful person Akata came into contact with, besides his sect¡¯s elders and leader, was Golden Runic Lord Taple who had a cultivation at the Low Third Rank. Thinking about it this way, Noluck wouldn¡¯t be far from that cultivation. That meant that Noluck would be extremely helpful when Akata encountered strong enemies he couldn¡¯t defeat.

    After a bit of thinking, Akata didn¡¯t ask Noluck what his cultivation was. He could tell that Noluck was still becoming accustomed to using his spiritual power and didn¡¯t mean to reveal his cultivation. Thus, Akata decided to ignore it.

    ¡°It seems that we now have a connection between us.¡± Since he decided to dodge the subject, Akata changed the topic. ¡°Basically, from what I feel, my soul rune over there brought forth a connection between us. That connections allows you to be a part of me. That means you can actually dwell in my body and I can summon you whenever.¡± Akata began to explain.

    ¡°Ah. So that¡¯s how it is. No wonder it feels like you can control me.¡± Noluck came to a realization. ¡°No matter. I don¡¯t wish to show my face to the world just yet. It just so happens that this place is a treasure trove to train in as well. All of these elemental energies are pure and I can comprehend the intents behind them.¡± Noluck spoke out as if he didn¡¯t care about the matter at all. Him, who wished to even be Akata¡¯s servant didn¡¯t mind being controlled.

    ¡°Mn.¡± Akata nodded his head. He had a feeling Noluck wouldn¡¯t mind. After speaking a few more words and coming up with a plan for the future, Akata left his soul region and put his consciousness back in his real body.

    ¡®Even though it wasn¡¯t as smooth as I hoped it would go, everything turned out even better than I expected. Now that all of this is done I should get some training in.¡¯ With a flash, Akata rushed toward the arena to train.

    After arriving Akata immediately sensed Peizhi Xiuying and Huihe Ji. He flashed over to their location.

    ¡°Brother Swordlife, your skills are simply monstrous. It¡¯s going to take me a bit of time to catch up to you haha.¡± Peizhi Xiuying lightly laughed and spoke in a joking manner.

    ¡°Peizhi Xiuying, your skills are just as monstrous as mine. Heck! You can even turn into a real plant cultivator.¡± Huihe Ji said in a laughing manner.

    At this point in time, both of them were sitting on the ground cross-legged. They appeared to be at ease and quite friendly with each other. Smiles were on their faces and laughs could even be heard.

    ¡°Whoa!¡± Akata yelled out upon seeing them. To be more precise, it was upon seeing the environment they were in. Originally it was a grand forest with towering trees and plant life. But now, their surroundings had turned into a wasteland. There were no trees, grass, or even soil near the two of them. It was like a barren land filled with naught.

    ¡°Akata!¡± The two of them cast their gazes toward Akata. They stood up and made their way over to him with faces of joy.

    ¡°Let¡¯s fight!¡± Before any greeting words could come out, Huihe Ji spoke those words to Akata. Not to mention Akata, even Peizhi Xiuying was caught off guard.

    ¡°We¡¯re going to be on the same team and therefore we should all know about each others abilities. What better way then to show them. After we spar we can talk about our fight and gain insights from it.¡± Huihe Ji spoke his words to clarify the situation. ¡°Besides, from what I know, this war should be starting soon. At the earliest a few days from now but at the latest then maybe two weeks. We have to get stronger faster so we can prepare ourselves for all obstacles.¡±Stolen story; please report.

    Akata listened closely. After hearing Huihe Ji out, even he had to admit that Huihe Ji¡¯s way of thinking surpassed his. ¡°That¡¯s a great idea actually.¡± Akata smiled. Even if Huihe Ji didn¡¯t ask to fight, Akata himself would¡¯ve done so.

    ¡°Don¡¯t leave me out of this. I¡¯m part of the team as well. Besides, I¡¯m the weakest of us three so I should be getting the most training in.¡± Peizhi Xiuying yelled out.

    Seeing her flustered appearance and pouting face, Akata and Huihe Ji couldn¡¯t help but laugh out loud. ¡°Okay okay.¡± They both said at the same time.

    After a few more greetings and words, the three of them ran to another region of land. This land was covered in bright orange sand. There were a few cacti around but other than those there was nothing else.

    The three stopped in the desert and looked around. After nodding to each other that this was a good place, they started to let their fighting will run rampant. A strong gust of wind blew by and made the clothes of the three flutter violently. However, their figures remained unmoved.

    ¡°Hehe. Since we¡¯re going to be working together and I trust you two, I won¡¯t keep any secrets. I train in the Worldsword Spiritgod Tome. It¡¯s an upgraded version of the Gluttonous Sword Spirit Art I used to train in. I can directly absorb the spiritual energy in my surroundings to increase my strength and sword intent. However, taking another¡¯s life and absorbing their energy increases my strength even faster. With this tome, I can summon the Worldsword and transform my body into the Spiritgod Form.

    My Worldsword and Spiritgod Form can be upgraded. Right now my comprehension has reached the Blood World level. At this level, when I summon my Worldsword it becomes the Bloodblade Sword, and when I transform to my Spiritgod Form I can increase my cultivation by a Grade and control World Spirits.¡± Huihe Ji started to explain.

    ¡°World Spirits are creatures from the Spirit World. The Spirit World is a separate space within my Worldsword. Whenever I take the life of someone and absorb their being, a part of them are trapped within my Spirit World and they become World Spirits. Since my strength is too low I can only control Blood Spirits. But I feel a breakthrough coming soon. I feel like I can reach the next level where I can control an Outer Element.¡±

    Akata and Peizhi Xiuying looked at each other then back at Huihe Ji. The information he told them was truly priceless and secretive. If any of them had ulterior motives they could use this information to attack him with confidence. But, luckily, they were all rather close and trusting of each other.

    ¡°Well in that case I train in the Nine Petals Tome. It is an art that allows me to better control the yin element and also become a False Plantist. I am permanently a False Plantist now and with that my battle power rises greatly and I am able to control nature on a scale only true plant cultivators can match. I can summon plants and use their power as if they¡¯re my own. All of my attacks contain the yin element and have a corrosive effect added to them, thus they can block armor to a certain degree.

    If I need more power then I can become a True Plantist and transform into my Yinbloom Form. In my Yinbloom Form my attacks are much stronger, my defense is much greater, and my speed is much faster. I also have great skills in healing and support. When in my Yinbloom Form, my support skills are also enhanced to a much greater degree.¡± Peizhi Xiuying spoke out with a smile on her face.

    Seeing as how the other two before him went, how could Akata keep his secrets? ¡°I train in more than one art. I first started training in the World Omen of Lord Dullahan, the peerless assassination art. I learned my scythe skills from this. Then I started training in the Underdark Art and Heartsoul Techniques, which has taught me some soul element techniques in addition to a bit more scythe techniques. I¡¯m very adept at killing my targets and won¡¯t even leave a trace behind.

    I also train in a mysterious art I found that allows me to fuse together other arts and techniques. This increases their power exponentially. From this art I also obtained a form which I call the Forsaken Form.¡±

    Akata randomly came up with a name for his true form. Since Huihe Ji had his Spiritgod Form and Peizhi Xiuying had her Yinbloom Form, Akata, being a child still, wouldn¡¯t let them outdo him. Thus, he came up with a random name for his true form. The Forsaken Form. The reason he thought of forsaken was because he felt like he wouldn¡¯t use it at all.

    Continuing to tell his secrets, Akata didn¡¯t stop. ¡°Not only that but I have two runes that¡­ ¡°

    ¡°Akata, Peizhi Xiuying, and Swordlife.¡± All of a sudden, the three people heard a familiar voice. They shifted their heads and found a beautiful lady standing in the air above them. That beautiful lady was of course Sect Leader Fu.

    ¡°Sect Leader Fu.¡± The three greeted her with respect.

    ¡°I have your mission ready. You will set out for it in two days. I¡¯ll brief you about the mission along with your group tomorrow. For now I just wanted to say that you three are now apart of the Cloud Corps and are Dragonknights. Therefore, you have to take a title. Huihe Ji has already taken his title as Swordlife. Therefore only you two need titles. These titles will be your new names while on a mission. Do not address yourselves as anything else while on a mission.

    The abrupt appearance of Sect Leader Fu caused the three to become flustered and lose their train of thought. Yet, as soon as she appeared she started talking about a sudden mission and then new names for them? How could they keep up?

    Sect Leader Fu didn¡¯t bother giving them time to think as she continued. ¡°Peizhi Xiuying, your Dragonknight title will be known as Yinlife. From now on, while on a mission, this will be your only name.¡± Without waiting for her to say a word she turned to Akata and spoke. ¡°Akata, your Dragonknight title will be known as Nolife. From now on, while on a mission, this will be your only name.¡±

    With that she turned and left. She came swiftly, and left just as quickly.

    The three stood at a loss, confusion filled their faces. The thoughts going through their minds was why she came randomly to tell them information that could have waited for tomorrow.

    ¡°Make sure not to tell anybody about your runes. Otherwise, I won¡¯t wait for your enemies to come, for I will kill you myself.¡± Sect Leader Fu spoke mentally to Akata.

 Chapter 169: Strongest Dragonknight

    Although Sect Leader Fu left, nobody started talking again. Akata turned his head to Peizhi Xiuying and Huihe Ji, he could see that sweat drenched their bodies and fear dwelled within their eyes. Clearly, Sect Leader Fu also had some words for them as well.

    ¡°How about we just spar to increase our combat awareness?¡± Akata made a suggestion to the group. Even though the Sect Leader left, the oppressive feeling she gave off still lingered. Only by clearing their minds would the oppressive feeling go away gradually.

    ¡°That¡¯s a great idea! While knowing each other¡¯s secrets brings us together on a bonding level, only by fighting will we really know what level we¡¯re at.¡± Huihe Ji spoke out. He was embarrassed that he made the suggestion to reveal each other secrets and now he wanted to relieve himself of the pressure.

    ¡°Mn. I agree with that too.¡± Peizhi Xiuying obviously wouldn¡¯t go against this idea. She knew she was the weakest of the group and therefore wanted to become stronger faster than Akata and Huihe Ji.

    After the three agreed they got into their defensive postures. Their auras started to change. A strong sword-intent emanated from Huihe Ji, A cold detached yin energy radiated from Peizhi Xiuying, while a calm might effused from Akata.

    Swish! Peizhi Xiuying waved her hand in the air. A strong gust of wind filled with divine energy came through. Not only was the wind filled with divine energy, it also contained elemental energy; energy from the Inner Element of Night.

    The wind encompassed a vast area. Both Akata and Huihe Ji were within this area. Whoosh! Akata used his Shadowlight movement skill. But, instead of escaping, he advanced toward Peizhi Xiuying.

    Huihe Ji was even more dominating as he directly waved his hand and scattered the divine wind that surrounded him. With a tap of his foot, he advanced forward. Each step resulted in an afterimage coming into view. As he moved, more and more afterimages appeared. This was a grand movement technique called the Multiple Figure Mirage. It¡¯s might was being displayed perfectly in the hands of Huihe Ji. It¡¯s speed was no less inferior than Akata¡¯s Shadowlight skill.

    Both Akata and Huihe Ji appeared in front of Peizhi Xiuying in a flash. Akata raised his hand and swiped it down. Although it was a simple movement, it contained grand might. It was actually a technique, the Guillotine Slice. Huihe Ji didn¡¯t lose out in might either as he punched out. His fist seemed to fill the world with his pride. Just looking upon it made one feel as if they had no chance to escape. This was also a grand skill, the Purgatory Fists.

    Seeing the two incoming attacks, Peizhi Xiuying could feel their might. But she didn¡¯t back away. Instead, she shot her palms forward in front of her chest as divine energy gathered upon them. ¡°Divine Night Field!¡± She yelled out.

    Whoosh! A black screen gathered in front of her palms as if planning to block the attacks.

    Boom boom! The hand slice and fist strike landed on the screen and instantly shattered it. But upon looking at the other side, Peizhi Xiuying was no longer in sight.

    Whoosh! Before the two could even look for her, two incomparably hard metallic spears shot towards them from the below the ground. Sensing the spears, the two instantly reacted and jumped back. Just as they jumped, however, the spears suddenly bent towards them. It was as if the spears in front of them were snakes with exceptional agility. But, upon closer inspection, they were clearly vines.

    Akata reacted immediately upon seeing this. He waved his hand as a black flame with crimson tips surged forth with boundless might. This flame seemed to possess the howling of ghosts and the cries of demons. The energy that it gave off was one of pure evil. This was precisely Akata¡¯s demonic hellfire.

    Although he hadn¡¯t had the chance to strengthen the flames purity, its aura became crueler and much more imposing through his cold-hearted killing intent. Of course, with the increase of his cultivation and battle power, its might had leapt by leaps and bounds since the first time he used it.

    After Akata became able to use magic and contemplated on the fire element, his comprehension of the Searing Heat of the Underworld increased as well. There were a total of six levels to the technique. Previously, Akata was at the first level, Scorching Sand. But now, he had advanced to the second level, Melting Earth. Thus, he gained more control over devilish flames and its might and heat increased exponentially.A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

    The hellfire and the vine that was chasing after him collided together. There was no resounding boom like one would expect, but instead a deathly silence. The frightening vines that were as imposing as a celestial being were instantly being devoured by the hellfire. There was no room to resist as in the blink of an eye, the whole vine had been burned to nothingness, even the ashes weren¡¯t saved.

    This scene made Huihe Ji wary of Akata. It also brought along a new level of respect to his strength. But, he didn¡¯t have the time to think about all these things as the other vine was rapidly closing down on him as well. His speed was even faster than Akata¡¯s and so he created much more distance. With that distance, he stopped retreating and then clenched his hand to form another fist, which he shot out right after.

    This fist strike was much stronger than the previous one and much more domineering. The space around the fist strike lightly twisted and seemed to want to cave in on itself. The surrounding air became filled with its might. Its imposing aura wasn¡¯t filled with pride as the previous one was, instead, it was as if this fist was really slow and weak. Yet, as one gazed at it, it would fill one with a sense of terror.

    Although it appeared slow and weak, this fist was capable of crushing hills with its might. This was the second strike of the Purgatory Fists. The Purgatory Fists had a total of eight levels to it. The first fist was the Imposing Pride Fist while this second one was the Lifeless Sloth Fist. Each successive strike would lead to a much more powerful might. The might of the second fist was already double that of the first one.

    While Akata¡¯s devilish hellfire burned the vines away in utter silence, Huihe Ji¡¯s fist strike was the complete opposite. A large resounding boom was made as the fist struck the vine head-on. The vine crumbled under the impact and disintegrated in an instant. However, the force of the strike was too much as, even after it broke apart the vine, its might continued on. This was precisely what Huihe Ji had planned. He wanted to find the location Peizhi Xiuying hid in.

    Bang! The ground broke apart under the terrifying force of the fist strike. Sand and debris shot into the air creating a smoke cloud. Out of that smoke cloud a figure quickly shot out. It was none other than Peizhi Xiuying.

    Although she was facing two fearsome opponents she wasn¡¯t the slightest bit scared. In fact, she seemed to be enjoying this moment. This was the fight that she wanted to happen. She intentionally attacked Akata and Huihe Ji together so they both would fight her at the same time. Only with this kind of pressure could she rapidly strengthen herself.

    Obviously, Akata and Huihe Ji saw through her intentions and didn¡¯t go against it. They knew she was the weakest amongst the three of them and therefore they didn¡¯t have a problem fighting her at the same time. It wasn¡¯t as if it was a life and death battle anyways. With their help, she would grow much stronger. Therefore, they didn¡¯t hold back in their attacks.

    After Peizhi Xiuying shot out from the ground, she made dozens of hand gestures and then raised her hand in the air. Instantly a black light gathered above her head. It resembled a black moon yet the pressure it gave off weighed down on the divine energy in the area. The black moon lit up with a black light and then tens of small black lights sprang up around it. The small black lights looked as if they were black stars.

    ¡°Demonic Night: Darkarrows!¡± With a wave of her hand, Peizhi Xiuying pointed at the location Akata and Huihe Ji were standing at. With that motion, the black stars seemed to listen to her command. All of the black stars lit up and each one made a sound akin to a demonic warrior. With a flash, tens of beams of dark lights shot out. Each of the beams of light were fast and imposing.

    Akata and Huihe Ji looked at the incoming storm of lights. From their point of view, it was as if an army of demons had shot out many arrows at once to enclose them within the space they were in. There was simply no room for escape. But it wasn¡¯t like they were planning to escape anyways.

    Akata and Huihe Ji faced the barrage of arrows head on without any fear in their eyes. It wasn¡¯t that the attack didn¡¯t pose a threat to them, it was just that they wouldn¡¯t run away from a fight. They had to face this head on, otherwise it would hurt their own pride.

    Akata held up a single hand as a small spark appeared on top of his palm. The spark was about the size of a fingernail but it soon increased in size. The spark became the size of a palm then the size of a head. As it increased in size and might, it started to resemble fire more and more. This was precisely Akata¡¯s demonic hellfire. With a wave of his hand the hellfire was sent into an arc in front of him. But the arc of flames didn¡¯t shoot out. Instead it hovered in front of Akata like a protective snake. Then, spikes started to appear within the arc of fire. The spikes increased in numbers rapidly until they were so numerous the fire didn¡¯t look like flames anymore.

    Clap! Huihe Ji clapped his palms together with a ferocious force. He slowly separated the two palms as a fearsome intent gathered within. This was his peerless sword intent. Under the guidance of his sword intent, an illusory sword started forming within his two spreading palms. Finally, his palms stopped spreading and he grabbed the sword that formed. It was misty and illusory, like how his former sword was. This was a spirit sword.

    In actuality, Huihe Ji¡¯s Bloodblade Sword was also a spirit sword formed from his intent. At Huihe Ji¡¯s level, he could form multiple spirit swords but only one could match the might of his Bloodblade Sword. The newly formed spirit sword was held in his hand. All of a sudden he threw it in the air where it floated. After some hand gestures he pointed at the sword. ¡°Multiply.¡± He gave a command. The spirit sword in the air suddenly trembled as light burst forth. Then the sword became two then four then eight. In the end, tens of swords were formed, not inferior to the first spirit sword in might.

    Although this took time to explain, it all happened in a mere few breaths of time. Akata and Huihe Ji pointed at the sky, that was filled with arrows, at the same time.

    Si! Si! Si! Si! Si! The tens of spirit swords shot out toward the arrows in a shocking fashion. It brought along the might and intent of a pure sword cultivator. Not only did the swords fly out, but the spikes made of Akata¡¯s demonic hellfire shot out as well. They were equally numerous and didn¡¯t lose out at all to the arrows or the swords.

    Bang bang bang! The collision between the arrows, swords, and spikes brought along a wave of destruction that swept through the area. All that remained afterwards was¡­ utter silence.

 Chapter 170: Mindlife

    ¡®Wow. Even I can¡¯t help but be amazed at this place. All of this was hidden in the Center Circle? I didn¡¯t think this sect could hold anymore secrets but it seems that I was wrong.¡¯ A male stood in the Center Circle gazing at the palace in front of him.

    This male wore grey-colored robes and covered his face and skin. Only his deep blue eyes could be seen. An eerie aura emanated from this person. From this aura, it made others who looked at him feel as if their mind was collapsing. That was why none of his group members gazed upon his figure. This person was precisely Fang Zuwa.

    The door to the palace was open so after looking at his surroundings Fang Zuwa walked in the palace along with his group. Upon entering and seeing the huge city he was even more amazed. He didn¡¯t get to view it for more than five seconds before a voice transmission came into his head.

    ¡°Meet me at Red Cloud Palace Hall.¡± The voice was smooth and anyone that heard it would feel honored to comply with any demands that it gave. Fang Zuwa was no exception. Especially after he noticed that it was Sect Leader Fu¡¯s voice.

    Without delaying, using the map that he was given in his mind, he hurried to Red Cloud Palace Hall. Upon entering and meeting with the Sect Leader, he was told of the secrets of the sect and was shocked upon hearing that he was selected to complete the Sect Leader¡¯s goal. He happily and seriously accepted the goal.

    After accepting the goal he was awarded an Ancestral Awakening Pellet and thus had his bloodline traced back as far as it could go. Sect Leader Fu told him some more things such as Akata, Peizhi Xiuying, and Huihe Ji becoming Dragonknights. Fang Zuwa was slightly dejected after hearing that those three became Dragonknights, but then his mind started to flicker.

    ¡®Why are their three Dragonknights? Shouldn¡¯t there only be two? And why would she be telling me these things?¡¯ His mind was going through countless thoughts and his heart started racing.

    ¡°It¡¯s as you have thought. I plan on making you a Dragonknight as well. My original goal of having two Dragonknights of the Cloud Corps has been altered a bit. Instead, I will still have two Dragonknights as captains, but I will also have to Vice Dragonknights. I won¡¯t decide who is who so you all can decide for yourselves.

    Since you are becoming a Dragonknight you will have to take on a new name; that name will be Mindlife. From now on, while on a mission, you are not to go by any other name. Akata and the others have only been here for less than hour. So you haven¡¯t missed too much. However, before you go meet with them, I want you to do a small mission for me. Once you complete this mission I¡¯ll lead you to where they are. But if you fail, I¡¯ll kill you.¡± Sect Leader Fu spoke indifferently.

    With that, how could Fang Zuwa reject? He accepted the mission and after being briefed on it he set out to complete it. The mission shocked Fang Zuwa, but since his life was on the line, he had no other choice to complete it.

    After leaving Red Cloud Palace Hall, Fang Zuwa went to a building that was on the other side of the city. It was the place the other disciples were gathered at, the Red Cloud Gathering Hall.

    Although the Red Cloud Gathering Hall was a gathering place for the disciples, It wasn¡¯t a hall at all. It was more like an enormous living complex. It¡¯s size alone took up a quarter of the city. The gathering hall was the place the disciples would stay in the city. It had shops, training grounds, meditation areas, medicinal buildings and the like. It was like a city within a city.

    The disciples were split in the groups that they were in before and separated into different parts of the gathering hall. Fang Zuwa went to where his group was living at.

    ¡°Oi! Fang Zuwa, come have a toast with us!¡±

    ¡°Ah¡­ I wonder where those people that were suddenly summoned went? They could¡¯ve been partying with us.¡±

    ¡°Hahaha! Who would¡¯ve thought this place was so spectacular!¡±

    ¡°Right! This dump of a sect is actually so great!¡±

    ¡°All these years we could¡¯ve been living in luxury but those stingy elders and Sect Leader kept this all to themselves.¡±Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

    ¡°Bah! They¡¯re nothing but trash in my eyes. Give me enough time I¡¯ll be able to stand over all of them.¡±

    The whole crowd burst into joyous laughter as they talked about the sect. Hearing the crowd, Fang Zuwa¡¯s face became more and more unsightly. However, nobody could see it as his face was covered. He walked over to the group and with a light jump, landed on a table that was in the middle of the group. Seeing this, the group quieted down as they figured Fang Zuwa had something to say.

    After everyone was quiet he started speaking. ¡°For your crimes of slandering the name of the Red Cloud Sect and your devious actions behind the back of the sect, on behalf of Sect Leader Fu, you are hereby sentenced to death.¡± Fang Zuwa spoke softly and coldy.

    ¡°What are you talking about Fang Zuwa?¡± One person spoke out seeing that the situation turned awkward.

    ¡°My name is Mindlife. On behalf of Sect Leader Fu I have been tasked with eliminating you all.¡± As he spoke, he waved his hand and a boundless grey mist covered the surroundings and the people within. He pointed at the person who just spoke and a beam of light shot out from his finger and pierced the throat of that person, killing him instantly.

    The people no longer laughed after seeing Mindlife start to attack. They all got up and started to either counterattack or attempt to escape.

    ¡°Wha¡­ What are you doing?! We¡¯re a team!¡±

    ¡°Stop! Why are you killing us Fang Zuwa?¡±

    Cries rained out constantly but it was all to no avail as Mindlife didn¡¯t respond to their words at all. It was as if he was a demon who came to reap their lives and came for nothing else.

    Mindlife was obviously the strongest in his group so there was nobody who could match his might. The grey fog constantly corroded the bodies of the people within and his attacks were precise and fast, always landing a killing blow. Like this, Mindlife eliminated all of the people in the area.

    After looking at the lifeless bodies and seeing the blood splattered everywhere, his eyes started to tear up and he fell to his knees. This was his first time taking another person¡¯s life. And he didn¡¯t just take one, he took many. He was scared, scared that his hands were filled with human blood. That he took away so many people¡¯s futures. They would no longer be able to walk on this planet in this life. And he¡­ he was the one that caused this.

    He looked at his hands. Although they were clean and not the slightest speck could be seen on them, in his eyes all he saw was a bloody mess. A weapon that took the life of another. He was a killer now. No different from these people.

    When the Sect Leader had formed this group she had put together the worst people in the sect in this group. She had planned on eliminating everyone in this group eventually, even Mindlife himself. But, she wanted to be a bit benevolent, so she gave them all a chance to live. This chance was the trial in the Misty Forest. To pass this trial, one had to be benevolent to another in times of danger.

    Sect Leader Fu paid close attention to this group and purposely made many obstacles for them. This lead to the group suffering disaster after disaster, in the end, five members ended up dying by the end of the trial. But some passed the trial. These were people that risked their lives to save another, before Mindife came, they were ¡°summoned¡± to do a task for the sect. The remaining people were still seen as cruel to the Sect Leader so she tasked Mindlife with eliminating them.

    The reason why Mindlife was spared was because of his efforts in saving Akata in his time of need. Coupled with his talent and dedication for cultivating, Sect Leader Fu grew fond of him. Thus she wanted to improve him further. With that, she gave him one more task. To kill these treacherous people.

    At first, Mindlife didn¡¯t know how these people were so bad that they deserved to die. But then the Sect Leader sent him some images and scenes of their crimes. In these visions he saw these people raping, killing, crippling, stealing, and doing more atrocious acts to fellow sect members and regular mortals in Purple Sky City.

    Although Mindlife himself was on the death list, it was only because he had stolen some cultivation resources from a few sect members. It wasn¡¯t at the level of messing with regular mortals and especially killing and raping. Thus, after learning this he was naturally shocked and even angry.

    After hearing all the words that they spoke once he saw them, he became enraged. He had no more sympathy for them and started a massacre. But once everything became silent, all he could think about was how tainted his hands were. He was broken at this moment. As he kept looking at his hands he became disgusted and even threw up.

    ¡°Mn. That¡¯s the way. You could¡¯ve been apart of this group laying before you but you have changed your ways. I¡¯ll let you go through this on your own. Once you¡¯re done I¡¯ll come find you and bring you to the others.¡± Sect Leader Fu was still on her throne and looking at the events of Mindlife slaughtering his fellow disciples. She spoke to herself and after speaking she closed her eyes and started meditating.

    After a few days of sulking and blaming himself for the lives lost, Mindlife got himself in order. He straightened out his clothes and looked to the sky. He wasn¡¯t in the gathering hall at this moment but instead at a random shop he found after wandering. He looked down from the sky and saw a beautiful figure in front of him.

    ¡°Sect Leader Fu.¡± Mindlife respectfully greeted the Sect Leader.

    ¡°It seems that you have finally gotten yourself together. This event was inevitable. They were going to die anyways. Either by your hands or someone else''s. This is life, it is filled with death and destruction. Since you are now a Dragonknight it is better to become used to it.¡± Sect Leader Fu spoke bluntly and didn¡¯t even try to comfort him.

    At her words Mindlife nodded firmly. He knew her words were right and for his own benefit.

    Seeing that he nodded, Sect Leader Fu turned around. ¡°Let¡¯s go meet up with Akata and the others.¡± She waved her hand and the both of them disappeared.

    ¡®Eh? What are they talking about? Wait are they exchanging secrets?¡± Sect Leader Fu appeared within a desert and instantly saw Akata and the other two discussing secrets.

    She listened in closer when Akata started speaking. ¡°Not only that but I have two runes that¡­¡±

    ¡°Akata, Peizhi Xiuying, and Swordlife.¡± She was furious. Akata was telling his secrets to others. This was absolutely a disgrace that could not be allowed. But she soon composed herself. After speaking some words to them she left. But what the three didn¡¯t know was that she brought and left somebody with her, Mindlife.

    Mindlife watched the three battle furiously and he was in awe the whole time. Even his battle intent started surging forth. He was ready to join in as well. Seeing the three attacking each other he couldn¡¯t help himself anymore. He charged his own attack and sent it forth as well.

    The resulting clash between the four attacks didn¡¯t resound in a loud explosion, but instead, utter silence.

 Chapter 171: Strongest Dragonknight (2)

    As the utter silence pierced the air, Peizhi Xiuying, Akata, and Swordlife turned their heads towards a certain direction. They stopped their attacks and looked at the person that stood there. It was a person garbed in a grey robe. It was precisely Mindlife.

    ¡°Fang Zuwa?¡± The three of them called out this name at the same time. As they did, confusion filled their voices and faces. Wasn¡¯t this a place only Dragonknights were permitted to enter? How did he come in?

    ¡°You¡¯re a Dragonknight as well?¡± Akata was the first to ask the question. Since he was able to come in here then that was the only way it was possible.

    ¡°Mn.¡± Mindlife nodded. ¡°I¡¯ve also given my future prospects to Sect Leader Fu so please call me Mindlife. My apologies for intruding, I just couldn¡¯t hold myself back after seeing you three fighting so passionately.¡± Mindlife rubbed the top of his head in an embarrassed manner.

    The three of them were utterly shocked at this moment. Not because Fang Zuwa¡­ er Mindlife became a Dragonknight along with them, but because of how talkative he was at this moment. He was usually cold and detached, didn¡¯t associate with many people, and kept to himself most of the time. Yet now, he was actually quite outgoing.

    After a bit of shock and silence Akata let out a chuckle. ¡°Heh. Come, the more the merrier. Let us compare skills with each other.¡± Akata jumped back and then waved his hand around. All of a sudden, a snake-like red-black flame appeared around his figure. The flames danced around him, with his Searing Heat of the Underworld technique advancing to the second level, Melting Earth, his control of hellfire increased greatly.

    The others didn¡¯t dally either. They all separated once again and began to trade moves. The fighting began with simple pointers. Akata showed first started off with his Searing Heat of the Underworld and his Demonic Wraith techniques. Through constant comprehension and battle experience, Akata¡¯s skills in both increased dramatically. The others also used their own methods to fight as well. The common ground was that none of those methods were their true strength and main techniques.

    Fire danced around the desert, fists were thrown about, divine energy oppressed everything everywhere, and needle-like attacks could be seen flying in the air. The whole place looked like a crazed battlefield. The sand dunes were constantly being reshaped and the chaotic air only continued to worsen. Yet, all of this was caused by young people.

    Fwoosh! A raging ball of red-black fire was hung in the air by Akata. ¡°Hahaha. How about we get a bit more serious?¡± Suddenly, the ball of fire shrunk down to fit in the palm of Akata. The red-black fire then started to transform. It was originally a black flame with red sparks, but under Akata¡¯s sudden manipulation, the fire transformed from black to crimson. Furthermore, its power didn¡¯t decrease in the slightest, it actually multiplied!

    ¡®He¡¯s harnessing the Outer Element of Souls into the hellfire he commands. So he¡¯s getting a bit serious now?¡¯ Swordlife began to smile. This was the moment he was waiting for. He was anticipating for them to bring out more firepower, only then could he also go all out. It would be quite inappropriate for him to be the first to use his true strength as he was the oldest amongst the four of them.

    ¡®Heh. An Outer Element, I shall see the the strength that they possess. Akata can use the Outer Element of Souls, master has even told me his control over it is the best within the sect. Peizhi Xiuying can innately use the Outer Element of Yin, her attacks will contain traces of the yin element without her even trying to merge them. Fang Zuwa¡­ oops, I mean Mindlife I¡¯m not too sure about. Master had him on her death list before so she didn¡¯t tell me much about him. Based on what I know so far I should be at a disadvantage in terms of elemental energy, but that doesn¡¯t mean I can¡¯t hold my own.¡¯ Swordlife thought of his situation before holding out his hand and forming a spirit sword.

    When he grasped the sword within his hand, a boundless amount of blood energy flowed into it. It wasn¡¯t blood energy from Swordlife¡¯s body, but blood energy from the surroundings. That was because Swordlife had control over the Inner Element of Blood.Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.

    Peizhi Xiuying and Mindlife weren¡¯t slow either. Almost as soon as Akata had started infusing soul energy into his hellfire, they too brought out more power. Peizhi Xiuying waved her hand as her Grand Life Vine rose up from beneath the ground. With another wave, the beautiful vine became pitch black. It gave off a cold feeling but still had a natural beauty to it. Mindlife waved his hand as a two needles that were half a meter long each appeared within his palms. The two needles gave off a corrosive aura. From a glance, one could tell that they were filled with the Inner Element of Corrosion.

    Just based on the elemental properties one brought out, Akata and Peizhi Xiuying undoubtedly held the advantage. They both could control the power of an Outer Element.

    Controlling an element was a simple task. One just had to be knowledgeable of that element and comprehend it to understand its properties. Once one did that, they would be able to interact with the element. Based on one¡¯s talents for the element and comprehension level, the amount of elemental energy one could interact with and the way they interacted with the element varied. For instance, although Peizhi Xiuying and Akata both controlled an Outer Element, Akata had much more skill with the soul element than Peizhi Xiuying had with the yin element. This could be seen how Akata had even comprehended Soul Foresight.

    All the elements had a type of Foresight, even the yin element. Peizhi Xiuying still had yet to comprehend Yin Foresight, this showed that her comprehension abilities for the yin element were inferior to Akata¡¯s comprehension of the soul element. Yet, her talents for it surpassed Akata¡¯s. This could be seen how her attacks innately had traces of the yin element. Why was her talent greater than Akata¡¯s but her comprehension wasn¡¯t? That was because Akata had his mysterious soul rune helping him out. This soul rune helped him awaken and comprehend more things regarding the soul element. It wasn¡¯t that Peizhi Xiuying was slow comprehending, it was just that Akata had a cheat implanted into his body!

    But all of this wasn¡¯t thought about at this moment, instead, the four were focused on sparring and comparing techniques to improve themselves.

    Whoosh! Akata threw out the hellfire ball filled with soul energy. As it was launched, more and more soul energy gathered to it and was absorbed. This was achieved through Akata¡¯s subtle ability to control souls.

    With Akata launching his attack, how could the others stand by? Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s yin filled vine launched successive whip-like attacks that sent out yin beams. They were filled with utter coldness that froze the surroundings. Swordlife waved his sword sending blood waves that tore through the air. Mindlife threw needle after needle that were filled with terrifying amounts of corrosive energy.

    The attacks of the four caused a huge explosion that sent shockwaves through the surroundings. But even then, the attacks of the four were just starting. The attacks were getting more and more powerful and with the different skills, the four managed to gain some insights from each other.

    Akata¡¯s eyes were shining right now as he held his scythe and waved it around. ¡®This¡­ it¡¯s so chaotic. There are attacks everywhere, the energy being released is extraordinary. Even though it seems unorderly, it is actually capable of destroying the environment. This is what true chaos is about. It isn¡¯t just a single target skill like souls but it involves everything around the user.¡¯ In this situation, Akata wasn¡¯t gaining insights into the blood element, corrosive element or even the yin and soul element . Instead, he was comprehending the equally domineering and heavenly powerful khaos element!

    He already had some insights regarding the khaos element and could even somewhat control it. But his comprehension for it wasn¡¯t even on the same level of his illusion element, let alone his soul element. But now, he was rapidly gaining insights in this chaotic spar.

    If it had to be said that his comprehension was the best when it came to the soul element, then his talent would lay in the khaos element! Akata raised his scythe, but this time a crimson glow didn¡¯t appear on it like it usually would when he harnessed the soul element. This time, a violet glow was gradually surfacing. This glow gave off a feeling of being omnipresent, as if nothing could escape its path.

    With a swing, the scythe swiped down and along with it came a violet light. The light flashed toward the other three in a shocking and dominating fashion.

    ¡°This¡­¡± The three didn¡¯t expect this sudden attack. With a single thought, boundless power gathered upon their bodies. This power didn¡¯t come from them but from the surroundings. It was as if the heavens were granting them power to fight with all of their might.

    Bang! The chaotic violet light collided with their bodies and sand flew up in the air.

    ¡®Crap!¡¯ Akata was immediately shocked! He didn¡¯t mean to use that much power, he was just feeling the energy and released it. He never imagined the power that it held was so great. Just as he was worrying though three blindingly fast attacks shot out from the sand that filled the air.

    Akata was startled. He instantly waved his scythe as he used Khaotic Diffusion Lock, his intangible form from Demonic Wraith, and his Dark Intent Ring to defend himself. Boom! The three frightening attacks were still too powerful. In the end, Akata even had to uses his control over souls to slightly divert them away from him. After all of that, Akata was left panting for breath. Even after all of that, he had taken some slight damage. It didn¡¯t leave any serious injuries but he did have some light wounds. Those attacks together were just too fearful.

    ¡®Just what kind of power was that?¡¯ Akata was astonished. He could tell that they came from Peizhi Xiuying, Swordlife, and Mindlife but he didn¡¯t expect them to have that level of power.

    The sand started to settle down and soon the three figures could be visible within. However, their appearances had greatly changed along with their aura. Looking at them, they didn¡¯t appear human any longer. What appeared before him were three different figures.

 Chapter 172: Strongest Dragonknight (3)

    Three figures appeared before Akata¡¯s eyes.

    One figure looked to be a goddess of nature itself. She had plant-like skin that was white like jade. Her eyes were a pristine green that were loving yet cold at the same time. She wore a black dress that looked to be made from petals, it showed off her soft shoulders and stopped at her ankles. One of her beautiful white legs could be seen sticking out from the petal dress. Her hair looked to be made from vines but even so it looked soft, smooth, and natural. The vine hair reached down to her waist and didn¡¯t cover her face that looked to be drawn from heaven itself.

    Another figure seemed to be a living soul. His appearance was ghostly and transparent. A white mist gradually wafted from this figures body. Everything this mist touched seemed to slowly deteriorate as if time were passing by in a flash. Deep blue eyes were on this figure and with his gaze alone it would make one feel as if they were rotting from the inside out. The ghostly appearance didn¡¯t cover the fact that this figure wore light gray robes and had a head of white silky smooth hair that reached the shoulders. But even more shocking was that this figure didn¡¯t have legs at all, it seemed to just be floating in the air.

    The last figure stood ramrod straight like a soldier or a superhero. This figure had red hair that reached to the lower back and he was quite buff as well. A blood red greatsword was in his hand and brought an imposing aura. The sword and this figure actually seemed to be the same entity as if they were one to begin with. What was amazing was that this figure was actually 3 meters tall and looked more like a giant. To be more precise, a bloodthirsty giant. The bloody aura emitted from this figure was so great that the motes of red light that hung around this figure resembled blood droplets. It was as if the figure was standing within a cloud of blood.

    These three figures were precisely Peizhi Xiuying, Mindlife, and Swordlife respectively. They had transformed into their most powerful forms in order to take on Akata¡¯s khaos attack. What shocked Akata more wasn¡¯t the fact that they could transform and grow stronger, it was the fact that their forms were different from what he remembered and knew.

    Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s form was something Akata new clearly, yet at this moment, she looked completely different, as if she had greater control over her form now.

    ¡°Akata. There¡¯s no need to hold back now. If we don¡¯t go all out then we won¡¯t improve ourselves. I¡¯m actually surprised my form was able to improve as well. I didn¡¯t expect it either. Sensing the ancient aura it is radiating, it must be because our bloodlines have been traced back¡± Peizhi Xiuying said with a slight chuckle.

    Akata could only laugh inwardly. With a thought his body began changing as well. A blinding crimson and gold light sprang from Akata¡¯s body. It was so bright that the three couldn¡¯t keep their eyes on him and had to turn away.

    Black devilish horns appeared on top of his head, they gave off a demonic aura and looked like small slightly curved cones. Along with the horns came a tail that resembled a stingray¡¯s, translucent wings that looked as if they came from an angel, and tree-bark skin that gave off an ancient feeling. What¡¯s more was that his hair became longer and took on a crimson hue while his bark-like skin became a dull gold. The kudzu vines that he didn¡¯t have much control over also sprang up rapidly across his body, covering him like a robe. The vines turned white and covered over all of his features. The only things that could be seen were his crimson eyes.

    This was Akata¡¯s Forsaken Form that was upgraded due to his bloodline tracing back to the Ancient Era. In truth, the Ancient Era was a prosperous time where experts were everywhere. The experts back then were as numerous as sand on the beach. Why were they so numerous and powerful? It was because of their bloodlines!

    Bloodlines were powerful and mysterious existences. They were powerful mainly because they granted a special power. This power was called Bloodline Forms. They were forms granted by a person¡¯s bloodline. Everyone with a powerful bloodline was able to transform into a more powerful form based on their bloodline. Not a single form was the same either, they were all different dependent on the user. That was because many things could change a person¡¯s bloodline. Medicine, lineage, or someone else¡¯s power, could change a bloodline.

    The reason why bloodlines could grant forms was unknown due to lost knowledge but one thing was certain, someone who could access their Bloodline Form was exceptional and rare. They couldn¡¯t be compared to normal people and they would be far stronger than others on their same level.

    The reason Sect Leader Fu decided to let these four people become Dragonknights was exactly because their bloodlines were so pure and powerful that they could access their Bloodline Forms. This was also why she had given each of them an Ancestral Awakening Pellet. This was to let their bloodlines become purer and more powerful. Not many people were capable of having a pure and strong enough bloodline to access their Bloodline Form. Only truly exceptional people were capable of that.If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.

    Not only did people that had pure and strong bloodlines have access to their Bloodline Form, they could even use Bloodline Power. Bloodline Power was a power that could go against the world. This was because with Bloodline Power one can literally create their own world to rule and fight in. Not only that, they could summon that world whenever and wherever they choose! Because of all of this, people with Bloodline Forms were called by a certain name since ancient times, Freaks.

    Freaks created Freak Worlds. Since ancient times those that didn¡¯t have Bloodline Forms and couldn¡¯t wield Bloodline Power were considered normal people, those that did have Bloodline Forms couldn¡¯t be provoked, because they were Freaks.

    Right now, the four Freaks were battling it out to test their skills against one another. Akata dashed forth toward the three figures ahead of him. His speed was many times faster than before, it was simply comparable to a Second Rank cultivator.

    The others weren¡¯t any slower than him at all as they shot forth as well with unparalleled speed. The four clashed together with unbelievable might and started to exchange blows. Akata brought out his Bludhaven Scythe, Peizhi Xiuying used her Grand Life Vine, Swordlife had his Bloodblade Sword, and Mindlife utilized his Mental Corrosion Fog.

    The battle was fierce and neither of them let up. They were the four top disciples of the sect at this moment and so this spar had turned into more of a competition. Which amongst them was the strongest.

    Quickly though, results were coming in. Mindlife had his Mindfog Form but his skills weren¡¯t as great as the others. Akata, Peizhi Xiuying, and Swordlife had been in multiple life and death battles and so their experience was much greater than Mindlife. Therefore he withdrew from the competition.

    The others didn¡¯t look down on him because of this, instead, they felt like they had an obligation to help him out further and increase his battle tactics to match his. But even though they felt that way, they still wanted to know who was the strongest so they continued.

    The three of them were fierce and their tactics grew more and more numerous. Akata and Peizhi Xiuying had both led their teams to the Center Circle without losing a single member, this alone showed their wise decisions and battle capabilities. On the other hand, Swordlife had gone through Misty Forest by himself. His tactics weren¡¯t inferior to Akata and Peizhi Xiuying at all.

    But, even with the case of their tactics being evenly matched, power was another factor that played a huge role in battle.

    Swordlife fought valiantly and his Bloodblade Sword swished through the air gracefully. It was as if it weren¡¯t a mere weapon but more like an extension of himself. He felt at ease and even great anticipation. ¡®These are true opponents!¡¯ He thought to himself. ¡®I bet I can actually go all out with them.¡¯ Suddenly, Swordlife jumped back from the battle and looked at the two with a smile. ¡°Hehe. Let¡¯s go all the way out.¡± After that an immense aura of blood descended upon him. A bloody aura sprang up around his body and then formed into a blood armor.

    This blood armor looked valiant and deadly. It emitted a great aura of blood and made one feel as if they were looking at a field of corpses. The armor covered over his torso and left everything else bare. But that didn¡¯t matter, that was because as soon as this armor appeared, Swordlife¡¯s strength rose greatly and sharply. In an instant, he no longer radiated the aura of a First Rank 10th Grade figure, but instead a full blown Second Rank cultivator.

    ¡®His cultivation increased!¡¯ Akata and Peizhi Xiuying thought at the same time. In fact, not only them, but Mindlife was shocked as well. He originally thought that he was just inferior to Swordlife due to tactics, but now it seemed as if his own power was greatly inferior as well. He felt completely dejected, how could he not?

    Peizhi Xiuying had worry on her face as she looked at Swordlife. It was already tough matching up to his combat prowess while she was only at the peak of the 8th Grade, yet now he had increased his cultivation to the Second Rank. She knew she couldn¡¯t match up to him now. But even though she felt that way she wouldn¡¯t give up. She waved her hands as a boundless amount of yin energy gathered into a single black petal.

    The petal crumbled and black motes of light floated down to the ground. Each black mote of light then turned into a black flower as it grew from the ground. Those flowers then reshaped themselves into a humanoid figure. Each figure wore armor and held a weapon in their hands. They kneeled on the ground before Peizhi Xiuying as if awaiting orders.

    With a point of her hand, the soldiers dashed forth with incomparable might toward Swordlife. Swordlife gave a light smile as he raised his sword in the air and swung down in a simple manner. Sorry Peizhi Xiuying, or shall I say Yinlife, but this isn¡¯t enough.¡± When his words finished, the soldiers all stopped in place. They looked back at Peizhi Xiuying and then toppled over. All 9 of the soldiers had been bisected at the waist in an instant.

    This was currently Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s strongest move, Her Sixth Petal Transformation: Yin Soldiers. Yet, this move that created soldiers with strengths at the same grade as the user was instantly defeated by Swordlife. Peizhi Xiuying had no choice but to sigh and leave the battlefield.

    Swordlife felt dejected as well. He thought that maybe these two would be able to fight him equally if he went all out. He figured that Akata and Peizhi Xiuying were generally on the same level of power. So if he could instantly defeat Peizhi Xiuying¡¯s strongest move then that meant that Akata wouldn¡¯t be much either. He looked at Akata with sorrowful eyes.

    Akata looked at him back. But on his face wasn¡¯t shock from Swordlife¡¯s power but instead anticipation. ¡®Maybe he can match my full strength.¡¯ Akata thought to himself as he looked at Swordlife. He had been longing to find an equal opponent yet he didn¡¯t think Swordlife would be this strong. His originally dry battle intent surged forth. He was filled with the will to fight at this moment.

    He gave a slight smile as a crimson cloud appeared around his figure. This cloud was filled with the aura of boundless life and lightning. Along with his Stormvine Amalgam, golden and crimson light appeared around him. His wings spread open and he floated semi in midair. ¡°Hahaha! Let¡¯s fight!¡±

    Seeing the battle lust coming from Akata, how could Swordlife feel dejected any longer? He was extremely happy at this moment and dashed forth to meet head-on with Akata. And Akata wouldn¡¯t turn down a head-on clash. He shot forth as well.

 !! Message To My Readers

    Hello my past readers, it is I Kaysues. I just wanted to finally take some time to write a formal apology to you all. The lack of chapters, inconsistent schedule releases, etc. I know many were loyal fans of my story yet I let them and even the casual onlookers down.

    When I first started this story I was really into wuxia and xianxia novels at the time and wanted to write my own story in the style of them. So I started writing this, my very first story. I was so excited and I soon wrote like 50 something chapters. I wanted to stock up a bunch cause I knew with my work, school, and sport schedule it would be difficult to write on a consistent basis. (High school at the time) so after about a few months of writing and rewriting i decided I should finally publish my chapters. I went straight to royalroad (RRL at the time). With my stocked up chapters and my semi free schedule at the time I was producing work I was proud of at a steady pace. You all wrote reviews and comments that helped me get better as a writer and i appreciate all the support and criticism that I received. But eventually what I hoped hadn''t happen, happened. I graduated high school and started working full time hours because college didn''t work out. But then I ran out of chapters and didn''t have time to write some more at a quality I feel is right for you all. But that was the start, I could at least have a chapter out a week. But then I lost my car which led me to lose my job and etc. I was struggling and blah blah you get the point I''m rambling ??This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

    Long story short I ended up losing a lot after that and didn''t feel like writing; but a translator for a novel I''ve been reading for a while now (KOG) I felt as if was having the same problem as me. Unable to release chapters but really wants to yet can''t really explain to your readers why you can''t. It''s disappointed me the most out of anything. I''ve wrote a couple of chapters lately but haven''t relatedr any because I feel it wildw be wrong to release a couple of chapters after months of no releases. It would be like a slap to the face for you all and that''s something I don''t want to happen.

    If you''ve read the far my accomplishment is to eventually find a good stopping place for this story and discontinue it. I''ll more than likely will release chapters sporadically. But they will be released ????

    I wanna say thank you to my fans and everyone else who has read my work. Your support has inspired me to write and feel confident. After my depression ended I felt awoken and refreshed. I still don''t have much time to spend with writing. After all I did this as a hobby.

    Good skies,

    Kaysues

 Chapter 173: The Strongest Is...

    Akata and Swordlife clashed head on with each other. Their exchanges were fierce and calculated. In the blink of an eye, tens of exchanges were dished out between the two of them. The collisions brought upon mini explosions that washed over the area. Peizhi Xiuying and Mindlife put all of their power into defending from the shockwaves. The might from them was enough to seriously injure any other disciple.

    Black and crimson fire surged in the air as Akata unleashed his demonic hellfire. Ghost cries and wails seemed to sound as it covered over Akata''s figure.

    Under the Second level of the Searing Heat of the Underworld, Melting Earth, Akata''s demonic hellfire greatly increased in strength. At the first level of the Searing Heat of the Underworld, Scorching Sand, the user would only be able to control relatively normal hellfire besides some minor attributes the user implements. Akata''s hellfire for instance was black and crimson and had somewhat of a blood burning effect.

    Once Akata reached the second level, Melting Earth, he could faintly sense and interact with the true hellfire of the Underworld. This allowed his demonic hellfire to change fundamentally. It''s burning effect became much fiercer and could burn a person''s blood and leave a lingering effect that attacked their bloodline. This was possible because Akata''s hellfire was made with his own blood, therefore it gained some of his bloodlines abilities, interacting with a beings own bloodline. It could be said that Akata''s demonic hellfire was simply a bane to all beings. Having one''s bloodline burned and destroyed ruined their future potential. Nobody would want that.

    However, Akata could control his own hellfire with perfection, after all, it was one with his own body. So he could make it so that a person''s bloodline wasn''t burned during his attack.

    Demonic hellfire danced over Akata''s body like they were robes in the wind. The eerie and nightmarish aura they gave off, put wariness in Mindlife''s and Peizhi Xuiying''s hearts.

    The gazes the two of them looked at Akata and Swordlife with were filled with admiration and anticipation. They admired the strength the two of them could display this early on in cultivation, yet, that didn¡¯t let them forget that they too would reach this level soon.

    The two fighters didn¡¯t look like disciples anymore, instead they resembled a sword that commanded the power of blood and a flame demon that had the power to move the clouds. Their power broke the earth and shook the skies. It was truly a world shaking battle.

    Akata held a scythe in his hands as he swung about. Each wave was filled with his Stormvine Amalgam power and demonic hellfire. Even though his weapon of choice was a scythe, he still strode forth valiantly and didn¡¯t shrink back at all. He met each clash head on.

    Even with that being the case, however, the sword was considered the number one offensive weapon for a reason. Not to mention it was in the hands of someone who devoted his life to learning the sword all this time. So even though Akata was giving it his all, he couldn¡¯t match the ferocity of Swordlife for an extended period of time. Gradually, Akata had to defend more and more and found less time to counterattack.

    Akata¡¯s face gradually changed as his thoughts spun. ¡®The scythe is definitely not suited to one on one matches, especially if the opponent is an expert of the sword. His comprehension of the blood element is outstanding as well. It¡¯s like he¡¯s mastered the essence of blood and can use it perfectly with his sword. In terms of comprehension level, only my soul element can possibly match his level. Akata felt a headache coming on. At the end of the day, his knowledge was just insufficient. If he knew more about the soul, or scythe, or his runes, he could possibly use more tactics in battle that could help him win. But alas, he didn¡¯t have that knowledge.

    Demonic smoke arose around Akata¡¯s figure as he used his Demonic Wraith technique. In Akata''s hands, this technique became like a mini barrier. Anyone who entered the smoke barrier''s range would be subject to it''s abilities. He caused hallucinations to attack Swordlife¡¯s mind and he used his invisibility to counterattack. His intangibility wouldn¡¯t be able to work because Swordlife¡¯s attacks were too strong. The only useful thing he could use his intangibility for would be passing through walls or floors.If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.

    ¡°What kind of technique is this? If I get too close to him I''ll start hallucinating and seeing illusions. And that is just his natural barrier, he can also turn invisible and become intangible. Luckily my senses can lock onto his aura and my strength makes it so his intangibility is useless against me.¡±

    Although Swordlife was shocked he was still able to push back Akata repeatedly without much effort.

    ¡°My hallucinations aren''t effective against him at all.¡± Akata was greatly shocked. He figured that since his soul strength was so powerful that he would be able to disrupt Swordlife a bit with his Demonic Wraith techniques. The Demonic Wraith techniques relied on soul power to grow stronger, so the stronger your soul the more powerful the abilities became. But since it wasn''t working, that meant that Swordlife''s soul strength was either at Akata¡¯s level or even greater.

    Akata sucked in a cold breath. Even his specialty was countered perfectly by Swordlife. If even his soul strength couldn''t prevail over Swordlife, then there was only one end left.

    But Akata was unreconciled. Of course he could use his Kudzu Vines to fight back, but he didn''t have full control over it and he didn''t want to risk harming anyone.

    ''(?_?#) Hmm how could I forget about¡­'' Akata calmed himself down and focused his mind. He held up his scythe while soul energy seemingly gathered at a slow pace.

    Suddenly, Swordlife smiled. His smile showed his confidence and bashfulness. ¡°Akata, while you¡¯re very strong and unmatched at your cultivation level. I was already one level higher than you. At that level I was capable of killing Second Rank cultivators. Now that I increased my own cultivation to the Second Rank, First Rank cultivators are practically nothing to me. I¡¯m not trying to boast, I just want you to realize the truth so you won¡¯t feel too dejected once you lose.¡±

    Akata could tell how sincere Swordlife was being, and he himself knew that he wasn¡¯t a match for him either, but he just couldn¡¯t find it in himself to stop fighting. He felt that he had somewhat of a chance in winning and he was going to keep on trying until that chance disappeared from view. He didn¡¯t know what that chance was but he was going to fight until he found it.

    Swordlife saw the determination in Akata¡¯s eyes and he let out an inward sigh. ¡®It seems that I have to let my actions speak. I somewhat knew that my words would only drive him to strive harder for victory.¡± He shook his head. Right after, his eyes became sharp like a falcons. His aura rose sharply as he held his sword in his hand. With a sharp but accurate pierce the sword shot towards Akata¡¯s chest.

    Bang!

    Surprisingly, the blade didn¡¯t penetrate into his chest. A circular formation appeared at the tip that acted like a barrier. That barrier struck Akata square on and made him shoot away like an arrow.

    Bang!

    Akata crashed through the ground. He slid across for a few meters before finally stopping and laying face down. The soul energy he was conjuring up dispersed immediately. The hellfire that surrounded his body was instantly extinguished. His Forsaken Form lost power and he returned back to normal.

    Swordlife retracted his sword and let out a breath. As he did, his hair and body returned back to normal, along with his cultivation. He looked toward Akata with a special gaze, others would only see sympathy, but only he knew exactly what was going through his mind.

    ¡°He lost¡­¡± Peizhi Xiuying had a dejected appearance as she spoke softly.

    ¡°It''s to be expected. Swordlife is already capable of killing Second Rank cultivators even though he¡¯s still at the First Rank. When he uses his abilities to increase his cultivation to the Second Rank, it''ll be impossible for a First Rank cultivator to beat him. Akata already did amazing for lasting as long as he did. At least I can say I wouldn''t even be able to fight back.¡±

    Although Akata was able to defeat the fairy, Lelilio Pu¡¯ Pei, who was at the Second Rank, he still struggled immensely. If it wasn''t for the fact that Lelilio Pu¡¯ Pei was an injured fairy at the First Grade and that his life draining techniques didn''t work on Akata, he would have definitely won. This could be seen by how much the user leaders were beaten senseless by him.

    Even though Akata''s strength increased since then, so did Swordlife''s. Swordlife was already capable of killing Second Rank cultivators with ease. He didn''t even have to increase his own cultivation to do so. Swordlife was pretty much unparalleled in the First Rank.

    Sand moved about as Akata got up from the ground. He wasn''t injured during Swordlife''s attack, just pushed back with tremendous force. But that force allowed him to realize the gap between their strengths. It was a strength that couldn''t be shaken no matter what he did.

    After patting off the dust on his clothes, Akata looked in Swordlife''s direction. He took a deep breath and walked up to him.

    ¡°Your strength greatly surpasses mine right now.¡± Akata said seriously. Then he gave a large smile. ¡°But that''s only for now hehe. Just wait, I''ll catch up and surpass you soon.¡± Akata held up his fist toward Swordlife.

    Swordlife inwardly gave a sigh of relief. He was afraid that Akata would be distraught after losing and that his future prospects would go out the window. But who would''ve thought that his mind was actually so broad that a loss wouldn''t affect him. Instead it would push him to strive harder and gain more strength.

    With a raise of his own fist, Swordlife and Akata bumped fists together and smiled. By this point, no words were needed between the two. They knew that a rivalry had started but they also knew they would still be friends no matter what.

 Chapter 174: Red Cloud Knowledge Hall

    There was no longer any mood to spar, as everyone''s interest in raising their own strength surfaced. Now that everyone had tested their strength it was now time to improve upon it. Red Cloud Palace was more than just a place that looked grand, the resources available there were legendary. From medicine, techniques, armor, and weapons you could buy at the shops, to the special training environments that could be rented out.

    But for Akata, Swordlife, and the other Dragonknights, it was much better for them. Not only did they get unlimited access to all of these resources, they could even ask for pointers from the top Elders of the sect. This would be a dream come true for anyone that lived in this world and Akata and the others would definitely not waste this chance.

    ¡°I have much to work on so I will take my leave.¡± Mindlife was the first to excuse himself. And after that Akata followed suit. Everybody bid farewell to each other. They wanted as much time to improve their strengths as possible.

    ¡°There¡¯s not much time until the war starts so I can¡¯t improve my cultivation by that much in so little time. The most important thing to work on is my knowledge of everything; especially runes. If I can control even a bit more of my runic abilities and maybe even unlock the secrets to them, I should be able to increase my strength greatly!¡± Akata¡¯s eyes blazed with anticipation.

    He had a feeling that if he could increase his knowledge of runes he would be able to unlock many secrets his runes hid. Akata was already aware that his runes weren¡¯t normal and that they held great power within them. This could be seen from his Astral Obliteration skill and its heavenly might it brought upon others.

    Akata headed straight for the Red Cloud Knowledge Hall. This place contained many books that covered a diverse array of topics. Topics that included legendary places, people and even treasures. Although, there weren¡¯t any books on martial techniques. There were books, however, that could help enlighten the path of cultivation; the knowledge in this place was broad and something that couldn¡¯t be found anywhere else on this planet. After all, it was knowledge from the true super sect Red Dragon Cloud Palace.

    The reason Akata came here first was because he felt like knowledge that was considered sacred information to him and even the top sects of this continent would be like basic tutoring to those from the outer world. He felt as if he could learn a lot from this place.

    And as it turned out, he was right. Akata ended up spending half a day within the Red Cloud Knowledge Hall. Even though it was basic knowledge taken from the true sect of Red Cloud Sect, to him, it was world shaking knowledge. He even lucked out and found some ¡°basic¡± knowledge about the path of cultivation.

    ¡°So there¡¯s a perfected realm for each rank of cultivation! Luckily I¡¯m only at the First Rank Grade 9, so I can still reach it. If I was at the Second Rank already, I would¡¯ve lost my chance to become a perfect cultivator.¡± Akata heaved a sigh of relief. He wanted to reach the pinnacle of this world and become the strongest cultivator. To do this he had to find every way possible to become strong. Reading about the perfected realm of the Ranks of cultivation he saw a brand new road to walk on to reach his goal.

    ¡°Heh heh.¡± Suddenly, however, he let out a self depreciating chuckle. This was just considered basic knowledge to the people of the outer world. Or at least to the cultivators of Red Dragon Cloud Palace. If this was basic knowledge there then that meant that he had a ways to go before he could catch up to the disciples of that sect. But he wasn¡¯t discouraged, instead, he was anxious. He was aware of how weak he was but that just made him want to work harder to become stronger faster. Just thinking about how he could one day be standing over everybody and nobody would be able to threaten him or his loved ones again, brought a fiery desire to increase his strength.

    Akata was very casual in reading. Although it was casual to him, in reality he was flying through many books on the shelves. His mental energy was beyond monstrous and so was his memory. It only took him about 5 mins to read and memorize a whole book. Then he would get up, place it back on the shelf, and look for another interesting book to read.The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

    After some more time passed Akata caught a title on a book that caught his eye. ¡°The Profoundness of Runes?¡± Akata read the title aloud to himself. It was a clean book that had a white cover and the title was a dark gold that seemed to have a tinge of red in it. It looked incredibly mysterious.

    Akata picked the book up and inspected it further. The cover was a soft plain white that didn¡¯t stand out but the letters were bold and respectful. They took in all of the attention. Akata flipped open the cover and looked at the first page. The pages in the book were a deep glossy black. No words could be seen on them. He flipped some more but still couldn¡¯t find any words.

    ¡°What the hell? Where are the words or pictures or something?!¡± Akata was at a loss. He had already read some books pertaining to runes and his knowledge expanded greatly. He even tested some new theories out while he was reading and his efforts didn¡¯t go to waste either. But this book that was clearly about runes was much different from the books he read before. In fact, this book was different from most of the other books in the library.

    ¡°You have a good eye. First it was the Bludhaven Scythe and now it¡¯s this book, The Profoundness of Runes.¡± A voice that was filled with might floated into Akata¡¯s ears. Akata was all too familiar with this voice and as he turned around he gave a respectful greeting. ¡°Hello First Elder.¡± He said as he cupped his hands.

    First Elder returned his greeting with a nod and continued on, ¡°This book was written by a legendary figure. He goes by many names but most people know him as The Dark Runic Overlord. He was one of the top two geniuses when it came to runes. That title isn¡¯t baseless either, if he is considered number two in rune knowledge and use, then there isn¡¯t a number one. There is only one other person that can match him in the use of runes and that is the Light Runic Monarch. She and him were actually disciples of the same master and both became legendary figures as well.

    You might think because of the names that the Dark Runic Overlord is evil but it is actually the Light Runic Monarch. She is wicked and ruthless and would slaughter millions just to test one of her runes. They got their names from their background and abilities. It¡¯s too much to explain so I¡¯ll just tell you a bit about The Dark Runic Overlord. He¡¯s actually a demon and because of his upbringing, a lot of his techniques incorporated dark elements. Thus became of his name. He was definitely a genius, demon or not, and the knowledge he possesses is top-class. That book actually isn¡¯t a book at all, it¡¯s his personal notes that he wrote while he was studying runes. It contains some of his theories and ideas from when he was still a mortal all the way until he reached the Realm of Gods. Hell, it even has a few of his own creations and much more. You see, The Dark Runic Overlord¡­¡±

    Akata paid close attention to what First Elder was saying. All of this was news to him that made his heart shudder with anticipation. Right now, he was holding the personal notes of a legendary figure that mastered the use of runes and reached the Realm of Gods. The knowledge that could be contained within was immeasurable and limitless. This was simply a priceless artifact Akata was holding in his hands.

    After listening for an hour Akata finally grew restless and couldn¡¯t hold back his question any longer. He waited until First Elder paused and asked, ¡°First Elder, how do I read his notes? All the pages are blank.¡±

    First Elder paused and then let out a laugh, ¡°The pages aren¡¯t blank they¡¯re just locked. You think he would just let anybody read his notes? These notes are precious, any sect would fight to the death, even risking annihilation just to get their hands on them. There¡¯s only three ways to unlock his notes. One, you could have outstanding skills in runes and unlock them with your abilities. Two, you can use the key that was personally made to unlock the notes. Three, you can gain the notes approval.¡± First Elder explained.

    ¡°You don¡¯t have the skill to unlock it yourself so that¡¯s out of the question and we don¡¯t have the key so that too is not an option you can use. In fact, its because we can¡¯t unlock it that I could even bring it here in the first place, because it¡¯s useless.¡± First Elder said as he shrugged his shoulders. ¡°But who knows maybe it will approve of you. Take it with you and try it out. If you unlock it then it¡¯s your fortune but if not then it wasn¡¯t meant to be.¡± With that he vanished instantly. His words still echoing out.

    ¡°If First Elder didn¡¯t think I had a chance of the notes approving me then he wouldn¡¯t have said give it a try. So that means he believes that I can possibly gain approval of the notes.¡± Akata¡¯s eyes shone with glamour and anticipation. ¡°But he didn¡¯t say how to gain its approval.¡± Akata instantly let out a sigh. He took the book and then began to walk back to his room.

    He had gained a lot of knowledge regarding cultivation, the world, runes, and more. Although he learned about the perfected realm of cultivation, he didn¡¯t have any techniques to reach it. Most of his focus had been on runes.

    After getting to his room and sitting on his bed, Akata closed his eyes as a book surfaced in his mind. In the Red Cloud Knowledge Hall he didn¡¯t really read the books there, he just scanned and remembered their contents. Now that he was back in his room he would begin to digest and truly study the books he copied into his head.

    Many more books about runes began to pop up in Akata¡¯s mind. Rune Theory for Beasts, Elemental Rune Traits, Magic and Runes, Ancient Runic Philosophy, etc. All these books contained knowledge regarding runes and together they would set up a grand foundation for Akata.

 Chapter 175: Runes Runes and More Runes

    Akata dove into the world of runes. All that was on his mind was runes. How they were constructed, how they worked, moved energy, stored power, unleashed their might. Through his immersion, Akata¡¯s knowledge and skills in runes increased by leaps and bounds.

    ¡°I should try and identify what kind of runes I have. What properties they¡¯re made of and how they function.¡± Akata focused his consciousness to inspect his soul region.

    Colorful spots of light glittered Akata¡¯s soul region as they rotated around his soul. Normally, the soul space only kept the soul within but Akata¡¯s was unique. Not only was his mutated soul in there, but also many different rune cores. There was a fire rune core, water rune core, earth, wind, sand, and more. The cores came from when Akata imprinted them into his soul region to instantly cast the corresponding rune.

    Even with all the rune cores around, it was still easy to see three spaces that were clear of the rune cores. It was as if the rune cores weren¡¯t worthy enough to approach the spaces. In these spaces were three runes. A translucent rune, a crimson rune, and a golden rune. They emanated supreme power that surpassed the other runes by far. Especially the crimson rune, it even outclassed the golden rune and translucent rune. It was like the crimson rune was the general, the translucent and gold runes were lieutenants and the rune cores were ordinary soldiers.

    Akata focused in on the crimson rune first. This was his very first rune and also the most mysterious of the bunch. ¡°This rune is capable of absorbing and refining blood and souls to strengthen me. Not only that but it even has its own world inside of it.¡± Akata remembered the world with the crimson sun and yellow grass and couldn¡¯t help but be even more interested in his crimson rune.

    In an instant, Akata¡¯s consciousness enveloped the crimson rune and he began to inspect it earnestly.

    ¡°This!!¡± Akata couldn¡¯t help but be surprised. ¡°This rune is too profound. Even with all the knowledge I just obtained I can barely understand even the edge of the inner shell of the rune. There¡¯s no way I can even begin to know how the outer core works let alone the inner core.¡± A sigh escaped his thoughts as he inwardly shook his head.

    By this point, Akata¡¯s knowledge of runes increased substantially. He came to know that runes weren¡¯t merely made of two parts but instead four. The outer shell, inner shell, outer core, and inner core.

    The shell of a rune absorbed the essence of elements into the core while the core manipulated it. That was what Akata originally thought. While it was still somewhat true, there was much more to it than that. The shell had an inner part and outer part. The outer shell was used to absorb essence, but the inner shell was made to refine that essence. This surprised Akata because he thought that the refinement of energy happened in the core of the rune.

    The core, was much more complex than he originally thought it was. Once the energy being absorbed into the rune was refined by the inner shell then that refined energy would then be strengthened and compacted by the outer and inner core respectively. This type of rune would be much more powerful and efficient to use than the runes Akata used now.

    Akata learned how to create runes from the Scarlet Tiger Tribe when he was punished by the sect. They had taught him that runes were made up of cores. But during his training and when he entered the world of his crimson soul rune. His interaction of the laws of the rune world led him to gain new knowledge of runes. He came to know that runes had a shell and a core. But what surprised him was the fact that the Scarlet Tigers were truly lacking in their knowledge of runes.

    They didn¡¯t know that their ¡°core¡± of a rune was just the shell. The shell contained the essence of the element you were interacting with so it was able to draw in more of that same type of element to be used. The true core of a rune was used to power up and control the element. Thus, it didn¡¯t matter how much energy you put into it, the rune would always be usable. And you would be able to strengthen it as long as you put more energy within it. That was also a reason why Akata¡¯s runic skills increased so much.If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.

    Now that he knew about the four parts of a rune, his skills will definitely see an explosive amount of growth.

    Even though the crimson rune was too profound for Akata to fully study and comprehend, he was still capable of discerning some things from it.

    ¡°I used to think this rune was only capable of absorbing blood to strengthen me. But then it became capable of absorbing souls, an Outer Element. I kept feeling as if the energy it¡¯s emitting now is something more powerful than an Outer Element.¡± Akata mused to himself. ¡°The Inner Element of Blood and Outer Element of Souls are concentrated on this rune. But how did it actually change from absorbing blood to absorbing souls? Can it absorb more elements to strengthen myself. It even seems to be connected to my bloodline.¡± Akata concentrated earnestly to seek out answers.

    Hours passed by in the blink of an eye.

    ¡°The absorption and refinement process of this rune is utterly amazing. If I can incorporate this process into my own runes then they will be able to use a much more overwhelming and purer power.¡±

    Akata kept inspecting the rune but eventually moved on. It was just too profound, he couldn¡¯t even look at it for too long. He then steadied his bearing and made his way to his gold rune that sometimes flashed azure.

    Akata inspected it closely for five minutes before smiling. ¡°Heh. If what I learned about runes so far is true, then this is an Ancient Polisform Rune. Capable of switching between two or more elements on a whim with just a thought. And this one even switches between two outer elements.¡± Akata was stunned. Normal Polisform Runes were still used by experts but they were only capable of switching between regular inner elements. The Polisform Rune Akata had within his soul region was an Ancient Polisform Rune which could manipulate outer elements; something that was only capable of being done by experts in ancient times.

    ¡°The Holy Outer Element and Demonic Outer Element are both contained within this rune. Not only are they Outer Elements but they''re also polar opposites. The strength of this rune should be unimaginable.¡± Outer Elements were already much more powerful than Inner Elements and with the addition of polar opposites working together it would be impossible to describe the amount of power that could be unleashed by this rune.

    ¡°Somehow this rune is connected to my kudzu vine and plant arm. When my kudzu vine turns azure it is capable of causing mass and total destruction on a scale that makes even me feel bewildered. However, when it''s golden there doesn''t seem to be much of a difference.¡± Akata pondered over why this was the case.

    However, even with the knowledge he had now, Akata had no clue on what to make of his kudzu vine and Ancient Polisform Rune. Feeling a bit dejected he gave up trying to find the connection between the two, for now, and moved on to understanding his Ancient Polisform Rune.

    ¡°Ah!¡± Akata was at a complete loss. Even though this rune was obviously at a lower level than his crimson rune, it was still far too difficult for Akata to understand the principles behind it.

    However, even with that being the case, he could still make some vague guesses about how the rune worked.

    ¡°It seems as if the shell is morphed and is somehow capable of finding a balance between the Holy Outer Element and Demonic Outer Element. It''s almost like it uses one Element to draw the other element over.¡± Astounded, Akata wished he could understand more but his experiences with runes was just too shallow right now. It would take time for him to get a grasp of such profound runes.

    Knowing that the translucent rune was on the same level as the gold rune, Akata was looking forward to seeing if he could uncover any secrets from it.

    ¡°This rune appeared after I absorbed the soul of that fairy. What did he call himself again? Ah! Lelilio P¨² Pei. Ever since this rune appeared I became able to use aura. Does that mean that this rune directly correlates to my aura energy? If so, how does it correlate? And if not, what is it for?¡±

    Again, as Akata inspected this profound rune he came up with more questions than answers.

    The structure of the rune was complex and the energy it drew in was different from normal elemental energy.

    ¡°Sigh¡­ this rune is much more different than the others. It doesn''t even run off of elemental energy but instead aura. Yet it doesn''t seem to absorb any aura but seems to be a fixed amount.¡± Even after wracking his brain around the translucent rune, Akata was at a complete loss. He had more understanding of his crimson rune than even this rune. After all, Akata was proficient in the soul ever.

    But even if he couldn''t find out much about his three top runes, he still had plenty of knowledge about ordinary runes.

    ¡°I''ll just upgrade the rune cores within my soul region.¡± Upgrading a rune core wasn''t difficult at all. With Akata''s skill in runes he could upgrade a regular rune core within a few breaths of time. In fact, there was no need to upgrade his rune cores because he was entirely capable of making just about any rune he wanted in a few seconds or less. But with rune cores it will still be instantaneous for him to cast runes. Plus, he felt that if he had better rune cores within his soul region it would prove beneficial in the future.

    Akata soon set to work upgrading his rune cores and adding new ones to his soul region. The process was quick but there were many rune cores to upgrade and many more that he wanted to add.

 Chapter 176: The War Begins (1)

    BOOM! BANG!! BLAOW!!!

    A giant red palm descended upon the group of Withering Woodhorse''s, instantly crushing the group of four into splotches. The palm didn''t stop there as it dragged across the ground taking trees along with it as it moved toward another group of Withering Woodhorse''s. The palm grasped them in it''s clutches and squeezed.

    SPLAT!

    Blood, spleens, and stomachs splattered over the surrounding foliage, turning the lush green plants and flowers into a crimson horror scene.

    Unfortunately, this wasn''t the end of the utter annihilation of the Withering Woodhorse''s as the red palm continued its massacre; bringing an end to anything living in its presence.

    After finishing off the Withering Woodhorse''s, Akata felt pleased with his increase in strength. Of course, that red palm was his doing. This was a combination of the Red Cloud Formation technique and a variation of his Mirror Reflection runic ability; combining the Inner Element of Illusions and the Core Element of Fire. The results were astounding to say the least.

    "Okay I think we''re ready to up the difficulty level of this scenario training. Let''s head into the deeper parts of the forest and seek out the stronger beasts. Only when we face tougher beings will we be able to truly hone our skills."

    Akata looked at the battlefield and said with a voice full of confidence and passion. His confidence came from his strength and his passion came from his team.

    It''s been three days since Akata upgraded his rune cores and added more to his soul region. After thoroughly organizing the rune cores into groups his soul region looked much more grand and imposing.

    The crimson rune was the soul region lord of all the other runes. The gold and translucent runes, being under its direct control and also powerful, were sub leaders of the region. Outer Elements were under them, then it was the Core Elements and after that it was organized based on Akata''s understanding of the elements.

    During this time, besides immersing himself in the world of runes, Akata began to train with his group. Akata knew he wasn''t going to be the only person fighting. It was a war after all. Thus he decided to train with his group.

    With his status in the sect he could let them use special training environments, like the Spacetime Scenario Chamber they were currently in, to properly train them all. And by personally training each of them, he could point out their flaws and correct them, thus eliminating many blocks they had. Their own strength would then skyrocket.

    Akata could already picture his team full of elites. Of course this training would be very difficult for them, otherwise it wouldn''t allow them to surpass their limits.

    Of course, with Akata implementing this tactic, others were sure to follow, thus some of the other leaders started to train their group as well.

    Turning his head to look at his group, Akata''s eyebrows furrowed. "Eh? Why are you all laying on the ground? You can''t be that exhausted already, right?"

    Looking out he could see Bur Gers stretched out over a tree branch, Ran Bow and Laim Oh were sprawled on the ground, even Sumting Wong was panting heavily on one knee.

    Sumting Wong made a crazed look and then used a few seconds to gather some breath before virtually yelling out "Are you trying to kill us here?! These Withering Woodhorse''s are all at least First Rank Grade 6 beasts, and the stronger ones are even at the peak 9th Grade. How could we even handle a whole race of them attacking us? You handled most of them by yourself! And you even have the balls to say let''s up the difficulty?? How dare you, the audacity!"If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.

    Akata stared slack jawed at Sumting Wong flipping out. If it wasn''t for the fact that he secretly noticed the others expressing their approval of Sumting Wong''s feelings, Akata would''ve believed he had gone crazy.

    Scratching the back of his head, Akata couldn''t help but be a little embarrassed. Reflecting on his actions, it could be deemed that he pushed them a bit far this time.

    Sumting Wong didn''t say much, just that little bit before calming himself down. It seemed as if he had released a lot of tension with that rant just now.

    Akata wasn''t one to just give up ground however. He steadied his bearing and looked at Sumting Wong in the eyes. His face turning serious.

    "Although this may seem hard on you, what of it. If a random ball hits you in the head what are you going to do? Take it as a loss? No! You find out who threw it and land it smack in the middle of their face? Maybe. Or, you can take that same ball and sell it for a huge amount. You''ve gotta learn to rise above whatever life throws your way. Whether you''re facing something head on or finding a different solution, either way you''ve got to prevail over your problems. It''s not like a problem is going to solve itself. Be proactive. You all have amazing talent and drive, otherwise you wouldn''t have persevered through this whole training session. With your mindsets, who''s to say you can''t become an expert?"

    Akata meant what he said wholeheartedly. He truly believed that each person in his group could become an expert if they just strived for it. The only way you can truly accomplish something is if you think failure is not an option.

    Many people in the group were older than Akata but hearing him speak, it was as if an elder had possessed him to give a lecture. They all listened carefully and retained what Akata said. That''s right. If they wanted to become stronger they can''t complain about facing strong opponents. All of a sudden it felt as if the atmosphere had a shift in harmony.

    Akata could feel the burning desires from everyone to get stronger. He smiled and turned around. "Let''s go then!"

    Everyone: "¡­"

    Akata: "..."

    "There''s one more thing¡­" Sumting Wong''s voice rang out again. "We''ve been training for 2 days straight. We need some fucking rest, man."

    After setting up camp and eating some roasted Withering Woodhorse everyone became relaxed and easygoing.

    Akata decided to take some time to cultivate.

    "My Red Cloud Formation technique is much more condensed than ever. Learning how to properly construct runes and manipulate their energy has led my own power to naturally be more condensed. This in turn makes it much stronger." Akata nodded in self approval.

    After attuning himself with the ancient records of runic knowledge and applying his own theories into what he knew, Akata''s skill in guiding energy and condensing it became fearsome. It made his overall strength increase by 25 percent! This was an insane amount and Akata knew he was only scratching the very air above the surface.

    ''Thundercloud Brigade Technique¡­'' Akata focused his attention on this technique. Now that he had become a Dragonknight, Akata was granted access to the core workings of this grand technique. That''s because it was a cloning technique! An actual cloning technique.

    This technique guided one through the cloning process from the Mortal Realm to the Immortal Realm. The only downside was that one wasn''t able to actually create a clone until one reached the Third Rank. Otherwise there was a chance of crippling the body and injuring the soul.

    All the potential captains were given the first level of the Thundercloud Brigade Technique during the meeting with Third Elder. Once one became a captain they gained access to the second and third levels. Only the Dragonknight''s obtained the technique all the way up to the fifth level.

    The first level of the technique was basically there to let the user familiarize themselves with the Inner Elements of Lightning, Thunder, and Clouds. Akata was already very familiar with two elements; he created his Stormvines using the Inner Elements of Lightning and Clouds, along with the Vine Inner Element. The Inner Element of Thunder was more of a sub element to the Lighting Inner Element. Just like how the Inner Element of Ice was a sub element of the Water Core Element. Thus, Akata still had an understanding of the Thunder Inner Element.

    The second level served to build the foundation up. A strong foundation was needed to make a clone, otherwise not only would the cloning process fail, the user could also get hurt.

    The third level guided one through the process of making a clone. Using "lightning bodies" one would have to condense to form the clone.

    The fourth level¡­

    Akata: "O_O"

    The fifth level¡­

    Akata: "O___O"

    Thundercloud Brigade Technique

    Second Level

    A strong mind, body, and soul are needed to reach the pinnacle of strength

    Thus all must be tempered through repeated battering and recovery

    The cloud holds the lightning that quakes, letting everyone know of your all encompassing presence

    Your body is the clouds, your mind is the lightning, while your soul is the thunder

    Wherever you go an army sounds around you

    Akata began practicing the second level earnestly. He couldn''t wait to reach the Third Rank so he could make his first clone and truly showcase the wonders of this grand technique.

 Chapter 177: The War Begins (2)

    A faint white cloud appeared around Akata''s figure. As it appeared, a small rumbling could barely be perceived if one was a just a few steps away. Small sparks of electricity could be seen within the faint cloud.

    The faint cloud could hardly be seen. But if one was able to peer into Akata''s body, all they would see is a bold cloudy substance everywhere. His blood vessels, stomach space, lungs, soul region, etc. They were all filled with the cloudy substance. What made this cloudy substance fearsome, however, was the many sparks that could be seen dancing about.

    These sparks were crucial to the Thundercloud Brigade Technique as they served to temper and refine the body. The faint thundercloud naturally drew in the Lightning Inner Element energy from the surroundings which increased the strength level of the refining. Of course, Akata could either stop, slow, or speed up this process if he so chose. And since Akata was aiming for the peak, he obviously sped it up to his limits.

    The refinement process used a whole level so one could tell how strong the body would become after training in this technique. Akata''s body was already abnormally strong but after this it would also have a natural lightning resistance and become lighter and more agile.

    An hour passed by quickly and the group set out once more. As they fought together their teamwork became better coordinated and flawless.

    There was a time effect set on the chamber, a day in there would equal half of one outside. Essentially, the group was getting two times as much training as the other groups.

    The Spacetime Scenario Chamber was very profound and had plenty of power due to the Elders construction. But, the resources they had at their disposal couldn''t compare to what they were used to, thus they had to restrict the power. After all, with more people, the harder it would have to work. So to keep it running smoothly, the time effects had to be lessened.

    Swordlife and Mindlife didn''t have a group to train so they cultivated by themselves the whole time. Thus, they were able to increase the time effects of the chambers. They could effectively spend 3 days in the chamber and only one day would pass in the outside world.

    This whole period of time was spent training. Not only the disciples, but even the teachers and Elders were training as well. Everyone was doing their utmost to strengthen themselves.

    Three days later in Red Cloud Palace Hall

    Akata, Yinlife, Swordlife, and Mindlife stood in a row in front of Sect Leader Fu.

    "You four have earned the right to lead the Cloud Corps. The Cloud Corps will be a small special forces unit that will complete certain tasks that I assign. Nolife and Swordlife, you two are leaders. For this mission, Yinlife you''ll be under Swordlife, while Mindlife you''re under Nolife. There will be an Elder overseeing each of your groups from the shadows, don''t count on them helping you. I''ve already assigned the other members of your teams and will have you meet with them shortly.

    For now let''s discuss your first mission. Swordlife, with you being the strongest, I''ll make you responsible for being on the battlefield and secretly taking out key figures, I''ll send you those figures identities in a bit." Sect Leader Fu turned her head to see Swordlife assenting his orders.

    "Yinlife, you''ll be supporting Swordlife in getting rid of key targets on the battlefield. With your group controlling abilities it''ll be easy for you to draw attention away from Swordlife.

    Nolife and Mindlife. You two are taking a trip to a special region to resolve an issue. This place has a strong mental force field which causes a bunch of pressure for the mind. I''m sending you two because you both have the strongest mental strength amongst the Dragonknight''s.

    Of course I am aware that although your strengths have improved tremendously, it is nowhere near the level of changing a war. That''s where my Elders and teachers I have selected come in. They will be the main focus but you all are surprises." Sect Leader Fu couldn''t help but give an enchanting smile that held some wickedness within.

    After discussing more things she spoke to each of them to privately brief them.

    "Nolife, the region I''m having you and Mindlife go to is within Cemetery Hills of the Holy Beast Kingdom. That place is basically a giant beast graveyard. You can find lingering spirits and also some clans within. Work together with Mindlife to resolve the issue there and after that head to the Ming Clan for a visit. I want you both at the Ming Clan in half a year." Sect Leader Fu gave a brief rundown and seemed as if she was about to skirt off at any moment.

    "Sect Leader Fu, what issue am I resolving that it''ll take me 6 months to do?" Akata couldn''t help but ask.

    Turning her head, Fu opened her lips softly and muttered in the most blandest voice possible. "Given your current strength, it would take you at least 3 months to reach Cemetery Hills, considering how skilled and adept you are, you could possibly solve the issue within a months time maybe less. Then you would have to spend the remaining two months rushing to the Ming Clan. Which would normally take 3 months of travel. This is also my evaluation with you obtaining the Second Rank during your time in Cemetery Hills. So you should first worry about how you will succeed in not only the mission but also the time limit, and stop pestering me about information I''m clearly abstaining you from." With that she turned and vanished.If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

    Akata was left at a loss. "What did I do to make her so flustered¡­"

    Whoosh. Sect Leader Fu appeared in a room and held her hands to her head. "Ugh why does he annoy me so much. I don''t even know why I lost control of my emotions right then and there." Taking in a deep breath she eventually collected herself. "Okay it''s time I send them on their way."

    She took a few turns and made her way to a great hall. This was the main hall of Red Cloud Palace Hall. A small group of 8 people were within. These 8 people were the other members selected by Sect Leader Fu to be on the Cloud Corps. They were split into two groups, four would go to Akata while the other four would go to Swordlife.

    After briefing the small group, Sect Leader Fu had the Dragonknights come in. The Cloud Corps members eyes shone with respect and reverence. They knew what kind of skill and strength was needed in order to be a member of this group, let alone a leading figure. Even Pulong Chu, who was chosen as General of the Army, wasn''t as strong as these four figures.

    The identities of the Dragonknights were made secret so not even the members knew who they were. It wasn''t like they could find out either because they would be away from the sect. The Dragonknights themselves couldn''t reveal their own identity.

    "Sun Cloud Corps. Dragonknight Leader Swordlife step forward. Vice Dragonknight Yinlife step forward. Cloud Corps members Life Won, Life Too, Life Thrie, Life Foor step forward. You''ll be heading to the battlefield so be prepared to go deep behind enemy lines. We''re going to get a head start and move first." Sect Leader Fu had the mannerism of a commander so every sentence she spoke created a sense of pressure on everyone.

    "Moon Cloud Corps. Dragonknight Leader Nolife step forward. Vice Dragonknight Mindlife step forward. Cloud Corps members Life Ayy, Life Bee, Life Sea, Life Ddee step forward. You''ll head to a special region under the direction of Nolife. Follow his orders and make it back out alive."

    When the Cloud Corps members heard the names of the Dragonknights they couldn''t help but wonder. Swordlife? Mindlife and Yinlife? Maybe they were skilled in those respective things. But Nolife? What did that signify? Could he have the skill to bring an end to all life? This inwardly made the members a bit fearful towards Akata.

    Of course, if they knew that Sect Leader Fu gave Akata this name to make fun of him¡­

    Akata and Mindlife met with their group to get familiar with them. With the both of them being Dragonknights, however, they were already given information on their teammates. They knew everything from their names to the techniques they trained in. Of course reading a report and actually seeing something were two different concepts so Akata would definitely find some time to test their ability.

    After vaguely familiarizing themselves with each other the groups were separated. The Moon Cloud Corps made their way to the teleportation device nearby. Akata gave a slight nod to the Sun Cloud Corps before he headed off.

    The Cloud Corps was basically an elite super team of prodigies trained to go on assassin like missions. Therefore they all had to be strong and be able to survive in multiple situations. Since they had to be crafty and secretive, they barely had anything with them, mostly just the clothes on their backs.

    It didn''t take long to depart and after a few minutes the Moon Cloud Corps was gone.

    The teleportation array could only go so far. With the abilities of the Elders they could make teleportation arrays that could travel across this world, but they would be too extravagant and would easily be discovered by others and create a bunch of unneeded headaches. So they built some low-level arrays and just connected them with random arrays somewhat nearby.

    Akata and the rest of the Moon Cloud Corps appeared within another teleportation array.

    "Hey! Who are you all?!" A nearby guard yelled at the 6 people that suddenly showed up.

    Akata looked this man over and could see that he was a First Rank Grade 6 cultivator. The lowest cultivation in his group was Grade 7. Not only that but this guard was actually over 30 years old.

    "Where are we?" Akata directly asked a question. Seeming to have forgotten that the guard asked one first.

    Baffled at the question and then enraged at being ignored, the guard''s demeanor changed. "I said who are you?! What are you doing in my Rock Bottom Sect?!" His voice was raised and caught the attention of other fellow members of the sect. Soon a crowd started gathering.

    Akata paid no mind to this as he was thinking. "Rock Bottom Sect? That should be a sect Southwest of our Red Cloud Sect. It looks like we''re going in the right direction." Akata already had a map of the area in his mind so he didn''t need to ask for directions.

    With a nod of his head he led his group away from the teleportation array and in the direction of Cemetery Hill.

    "Wait!" A mighty voice echoed throughout the sect. "You think you can appear in our sect and just ignore our existence? Ha! Think again. Now, give us the answers we want. Who are you and why are you here?" The guard once more stated his words and even brazenly stepped in front of their path.

    Akata looked directly at this man. The man couldn''t see his face because the members of Cloud Corps covered their faces with masks.

    Although the guard couldn''t see Akata''s face clearly he could feel a powerful pressure emanating from him. And this was with Akata just standing there casually. The people behind him didn''t look like pushovers either.

    But the guard had already started up a commotion and gathered many members of his sect. He couldn''t back away and look like a coward now.

    "I''m Nolife. Just passing by sorry to intrude." With that Akata kept on his way. Walking past the guard as if he wasn''t there. The others followed suit.

    "Heh. To think a bunch of youngans are so bold these days. Ryu, teach them a lesson will you." A voice filled with might rang out. This voice broke through everyone''s noise to reign supreme.

    "That''s a Second Rank cultivator, from the aura his voice gives off he should be a low tier Second Ranker." Akata''s thoughts instantly spun. With his abilities he could no doubt handle a Second Ranker. At the moment he was thinking if he should escape with his team now or wait and see how things unfold.

    A burly young man appeared in front of the crowd. Akata glanced at him and noted his strength. He spun his gaze across the crowd and then spoke out to the Second Ranker that sent out Ryu.

    "Excuse me, I didn''t mean to offend you. We happened to appear at this array by mistake and just wish to be on our way."

    "Heh. I can tell you''re all young yet have such strength. You definitely have treasures on you worth seizing. Ryu take those treasures from them." The Second Ranker stated his intentions without the slightest bit of shame.

    Akata was stunned. If it wasn''t for the mask on his face everyone would be able to see his mouth agape. In fact, even his other teammates were flabbergasted. To think an elder would treat juniors like this just based on sight. He had no moral conscious whatsoever.

    There was no further point in discussing matters with this sect. Since a Second Rank cultivator already gave the go ahead, the disciples and others wouldn''t let Akata and his group go.

    "I just started this mission yet I''m already in trouble." Akata shook his head. They had to hurry and get this mission over with so he couldn''t use all his time fighting. They were still a long way from Cemetery Hill.

    "How about we make a deal senior?" Akata suddenly spoke up once again. The whole time he put on a calm and confident demeanor.

 Chapter 178: Warm Up

    Sitting in a wooden room on a sunset orange mat, an elderly man''s eyebrow ever so slightly rose up.

    "Oh¡­ what could a discarded body possibly offer up that could suffice as making a deal with?" Hearing the Second Ranker speak, Ryu paused his steps. Waiting for further instructions from the elder.

    Akata''s eyes scanned around his surroundings since he didn''t know where the voice came from. His gaze was bold and full of spirit. Everywhere it passed it made a person''s will falter.

    "If we are capable of beating your geniuses then you let us go¡­"

    Hearing up to here, the Second Ranker''s expression remained the same. This part of the deal was expected.

    "... But if we lose, I''ll just tell my sect to send another disciple to crush you in our place. Although we''ll take a light punishment it''ll be worth it to see your sorry figures wailing and sprawling about." Akata''s voice remained calm and confident throughout him speaking about this "deal". But what came out of his mouth was so unexpected that it made everyone in the Rock Bottom Sect pause for a second. It was as if time froze, as if it too were trying to take time to comprehend what Akata just said.

    The eyes of the elder in the wooden room burst open. A flicker of rage within. But just as quick as it was there, it disappeared. "Ryu kill them. Everyone, join in the slaughter." He flatly said. All in the sect heard his voice.

    "Come on!" Ryu''s cold but brooding voice enticed others to bring out their weapons. Akata and the others were already surrounded to begin with but now the scene took a drastic turn for the worse.

    Akata looked over at the burly man named Ryu. He stood 2 meters tall and had muscles the size of a watermelon. He didn''t seem too old only about his mid-upper 20s. What made him outstanding was that he was already at the peak of the First Rank. One more step and he would be at the Second Rank, where one''s life would change. In this part of the continent he could be considered a genius.

    The man approached Akata, as he figured this was the leader of this group, he aimed to make an example out of him. He wanted to use Akata''s death as a way to break the minds of the rest of his team. Already envisioning his bloody fantasies, he unconsciously licked his lips.

    Watching Ryu come closer one step at a time, Akata stood still without a worry whatsoever. He could see all the minute body movements Ryu made. From them, he could guess his thoughts.

    "Such a vile person. He truly aims to kill us. Hmph." Akata felt repulsed just by looking at the man further.

    All of a sudden Ryu disappeared. The members of the Rock Bottom Sect were at a loss. But then became overjoyed when they saw him appear in front of Akata. A 3 meter long orange mallet was in his hand as he smashed down with enough force to topple a house.

    Akata watched on as this happened as if he were a bystander. Finally, when the orange mallet was just upon him, Akata made his move. Raising a hand, it seemed as if Akata wanted to catch the mallet.

    Whoosh! Seeing Akata looking to catch his mallet, Ryu gave a slight smile of disdain. "Heh. This mallet weighs over a ton. I can barely lift it with my cultivation and physical strength. Swinging down, this has enough force to heavily injure a normal First Grade Second Ranker. " He hurried to increase his speed and power, looking to thoroughly obliterate Akata.

    From beginning to end the Moon Cloud Corps stood still. It was like they didn''t bother dealing with these people. They didn''t make any moves to help Akata either. The members of the Rock Bottom Sect were confused but then took it as the group being scared senseless; but in truth, the Moon Cloud Corps wanted to use this chance to see how strong their leader was.

    The mallet came hurtling through the air, smashing upon Akata''s palm.

    Boom!

    A loud muffled bang rang out. A flashy light or energy didn''t appear, just the simple sight of Akata holding the mallet in his grasp.

    "He¡­ he caught it?"

    "But that''s Ryu''s Sunset Blow Mallet! It weighs over a ton! Jeez."

    Shocked cries rang out, the whole Rock Bottom Sect knew about the Sunset Blow Mallet. It was a weapon that when struck down blazed like the glow of the sunset. This mallet weighed over a ton, and even with Ryu''s cultivation he was barely able to lift and control the mallet. Yet Akata, a young boy, caught it easily with one hand.Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.

    Akata looked Ryu in the eyes. Ryu could see Akata''s eyes as well. The mask Akata wore was a plain black mask. From the front there didn''t appear to be anything on the mask, not even slots for the eyes, mouth or nose. But there was a small screen-like structure built in the mask to allow the wearer to see, speak, or breathe perfectly fine. Of course Akata also had the function to open slots in the mask to allow people to see part of his face or all of it.

    Ryu stared into the blazing red eyes of Akata. He could feel the imposing aura of a monster like being emanating from him. It was terrifying to say the least.

    Akata simply stared at Ryu. Crunch! All of a sudden the Sunset Blow Mallet lost its luster. The weapon became lighter as well. Not a huge difference in weight but it was definitely noticeable for anyone who had tried to use this weapon before.

    Ryu''s eye''s constricted. He turned his gaze slightly towards the Sunset Blow Mallet resting in Akata''s now enclosed hand. This weapon was completely pulverized. This was a mid tier First Rank Weapon. Yet Akata destroyed it so easily. Ryu''s heart couldn''t help but shake further and fear kept creeping into his mind, body, and soul.

    He turned his gaze back to Akata. But found Akata starting to walk towards his group. He was just about to yell to Akata when he found out he couldn''t speak. He put his hands to his throat only to feel a warm wet substance. Looking at his hands it was full of blood! But when did¡­

    In fact everyone else was stricken stuck. They didn''t even see what happened. Yet his throat had already been sliced. No. His whole neck had been sliced from his shoulders.

    A black light shown and the Bludhaven Scythe instantly appeared in Akata''s hand. He twirled it around in his hand effortlessly and without any thought. This was the last thing Ryu saw before his vision blacked out¡­ for eternity.

    Nobody saw when Akata had unleashed his Dark Intent Ring for an instant and cut down Ryu in one strike. Even before having all his cultivation bases, Akata was capable of fighting against First Rank Grade 10 figures. Now it was simply a cake walk.

    Plop. Plop.

    After Ryu''s head and body fell to the ground the Rock Bottom Sect came back to their senses. They were instantly afraid. What kind of existence could casually kill a peak First Ranker?

    "Arrgh!" A roar spread across the whole sect. Out from a building in the central part of the sect, a bang resounded. A light flew from that place towards the surrounding crowd. In that light a figure could be seen, an elderly man.

    His speed didn''t stop as he rushed toward Akata.

    "You killed the Blood Saint''s peripheral disciple! You''re dead meat! I''m dead meat! No. No. No. No. No. I''ll¡­ I''ll offer you up then he''ll spare me. Certainly! Yes yes!" The man sounded crazed and his appearance looked disheveled.

    He didn''t wait for Akata to prepare himself as he struck out with a blast from his palm. During this attack he fully displayed his cultivation, Second Rank Grade 1.

    "Hmph, trifling senior. You should learn to respect your juniors." The elder was within a hundred meters of Akata when he struck out. From this distance it was all too easy for a Second Ranker to hit their target. Yet Akata wasn''t worried at all.

    He turned around and gazed at the elder. He had a bed of white hair on his face and head. Simply looking like a yeti. His clothes were way too big on him as well.

    As soon as Akata turned he vanished in a black light. When he reappeared he was behind the elder. Instantly, a world shaking aura and pressure sprung forth from Akata''s body. Beneath his clothes one could see his skin turn into tree bark.

    Akata rotated his runes at full power and unleashed the full strength of his combined cultivation bases. He cast a simple yet profound ability and readied his next attack.

    The elder had cultivated all the way to the second rank so he wasn''t a newbie when it came to fighting. He quickly turned around when he had sensed Akata disappear. But when he saw the figure that suddenly showed up his expression froze then quickly changed to fear.

    "B¡­ Blood¡­. Blood Saint." The elder stumbled over his words as his aura died down completely.

    Obviously the real Blood Saint didn''t appear as it was Akata standing there. The technique he used was Shattering Heart. The already jumbled mind of the elder was further tampered with bringing endless fear creeping into the elder''s heart.

    Akata didn''t stop there as he was already charging up his next attack. While in his Bloodline Form, Akata''s strength increased exponentially. His speed, reactions, power, and every other aspect was boosted immensely. It was enough to close the gap between the First and Second Rank¡­ and then some.

    Akata held his Bludhaven Scythe. He gathered the power of his hellfire and mixed the Outer Elements of Souls and Khaos within. The explosiveness of the hellfire instantly doubled. The black and crimson hellfire also had a light violet glow.

    Akata unleashed the first stance of the Underdark Scythe Art. Soul Swipe.

    The Underdark Scythe Art was created by Cultist Soulfire, a Fourth Rank demon that specialized in the Soul Outer Element and Fire Core Element. Akata was very talented in using these two elements and could thus bring out a lot of power using this technique.

    The Bludhaven Scythe swung down smoothly. As if space couldn''t impede it''s movements. The attack seemed to phase through the elder''s body and went straight to his soul.

    The elder shuddered and his face became pale. He coughed out a mouthful of blood and retreated back some distance. At the last moment he broke free from the Shattering Heart technique and hastily put up a defense. Though he wasn''t prepared for the attack to go directly for his soul.

    "I was only able to severely injure his soul. Tsk. I need to get stronger." Akata didn''t falter as he chased after the elder. If the elder survived, news of their appearance would spread and they would have people tracking them. They were in a war at the moment, after all.

    "Kill everyone." Akata coldly spoke. The Cloud Corps immediately assented and unleashed attacks at the members of the Rock Bottom Sect.

    The elder Akata was facing was the strongest person in the sect. While Ryu was the second strongest. Being a dragonknight himself, Mindlife''s strength easily eclipsed everyone''s present save for Akata. The other Cloud Corps members weren''t weak either. The weakest of them could match First Rank Grade 9 figures. Thus it would be all too easy to annihilate this sect of only a few hundred people.

    Boom! Bang! The Moon Cloud Corps went to action. Instantly killing off a few unprepared disciples. The members of the Rock Bottom Sect were drawn to the fight between their Sect Master and Akata, so they were completely unaware of the danger the rest of the Cloud Corps possessed.

    Seeing his group go into action, Akata continued to chase the elder. Even though Akata was still in the First Rank, his speed was equal to the Second Rank elder.

    Whoosh! Whoosh!

    Since the distance barely changed between the two, Akata was still in range to unleash attacks. He swept the Bludhaven Scythe across the air, sending waves of dark energy towards the elder. With each attack, Akata would slowly approach the elder.

    After fleeing until they were out the sect Akata turned serious. "Now I can unleash my full power."

    The elder looked back to see Akata slowing down. "Heh. Can''t keep up with me. His cultivation is too low." The elder couldn''t help but smile at this. But all of a sudden he felt something amiss.

    The natural energy around him started to become chaotic. The laws of nature were reacting to a very dangerous aura. In fact, the elder could also sense this almost impossible to describe aura. His eyes blanched.

    "Wha¡­ What the fuck is going on with this kid¡­" The elder stared at a loss as he sensed the energy radiating from Akata''s body.

 Chapter 179: Strength of the Moon Cloud Corps

    "What kind of energy is this? How come it''s so powerful?!" The elder was astounded, respectful, envious, fearful¡­ his mind was all over the place at this moment. He just couldn''t comprehend what kind of power this young boy could harness.

    "This¡­ is the true potential of my combined bases. A mixture of the energy from the Mortal Realm, Demon Realm, Beast Realm, Fairy Realm, and the Plant Realm, I shall call this the Infinite Realms Power." Akata was pleased with himself as he finally tested out this new energy. A multicolored shadow wafted from Akata''s body as he hovered in the air, flapping his translucent wings periodically. This shadow was what caused that disturbance in nature and the unrest in the elders eyes.

    Ever since Akata had combined his cultivation bases he kept feeling as if many new possibilities were waiting for him to unlock. One secret he theorized about happened to come true, the combined energy of all the cultivation bases. This was his natural power yet for some reason it took some time for him to unlock its use. But now that he did, it felt wonderful. He could perceive the world in a new fashion and interact with it on a whole new fundamental level.

    That was because Akata''s power came from the combination of the energy of The Five Realms. Most beings and objects were created on the basis of the workings from one of the five realms- Mortal, Beast, Demon, Plant, or Fairy. Of course these weren''t the only Realms just the main five. And Akata''s whole being was a combination of all five. He could be considered a god-like entity. His understanding of the workings nature could not be surpassed by normal people in his generation and neither could his accomplishments be measured.

    Akata rotated his golden rune and infused his Infinite Realms Power within. Pulling his arm back Akata leapt forward and punched out. The elder being completely flabbergasted by the sudden energy outburst from Akata completely forgot about escaping. It wasn''t until Akata lunged that he remembered he had to run away. But it was already too late.

    They were constantly within 70 meters of each other, which was negligible considering their strengths. Akata was already upon the elder by the time one could blink.

    Craack! The elder''s chest caved in while he was smashed into the ground ruthlessly. The surrounding area looked as if a small meteor came crashing down to cause a wide crater to appear. The body of the elder in the center.

    This was Akata''s new skill he developed while testing theories with his own runes. This skill, Folding Annihilation, was used in conjunction with his gold rune. It was a variation of Astral Obliteration but instead of it being a ranged attack, it was strictly melee focused. Akata harnessed the energy of the gold rune to flow through his body, increasing his strength in an instant. Unfortunately his body could only endure so little of the energy of the rune so he could only access it for a moment before putting it away.

    But that one moment was all he needed once he made contact. The amount of control Akata used to release a bit of the massive amount of energy from the gold rune and send it to a part of his body and cut it off as quick as him making contact in the middle of a fight took as much of a toll on the mind as trying to explain it.

    "And read it¡­"

    The force of this skill was astounding. Not only did it take the bit of extreme energy but it also compressed it further. This was the ''Folding'' aspect of it. Thus, one could imagine the end result of someone at the receiving end of this attack.

    The elder laid motionless on the ground yet he was not dead yet. His eyes were unfocused but they were indeed open and he was aware, just barely however. Akata revoked his aura and sauntered over to the dying man.

    Akata could tell the elder only had a few moments left. The blow Akata had given him was a direct hit, while the elder was already severely injured from the attack before. The inside of his body at the moment resembled strawberry pudding, nothing but mushed up organs.

    The elder felt a figure approach and slightly turned his gaze in that direction. He couldn''t see who he was talking to or if anyone was really there but he spoke anyways.

    "You¡­ fr-fr-fright¡­ ning¡­ being¡­ heh hehe¡­ *cough COUGH* Blood¡­ Saint¡­ will still-" The elder''s words were cut short¡­ along with his neck. Akata collected the elder''s things and turned back around.

    "Blood Saint? Who is this guy? From my guesses he has to at least be a Mid Second Ranker." Akata felt a headache coming on. He was just too weak.

    The reason Akata guessed the Blood Saint was at least a Mid Second Ranker was because of two things.

    Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more.

    <ol>

    <li style="font-weight: 400">The elder in charge here got utterly thrashed yet still believed in the Blood Saints prowess.</li>

    <li style="font-weight: 400">Ryu was his periphery disciple.</li>

    </ol>

    The main reason was the second. Ryu was considered really talented in this region of the continent and for him to only be a periphery disciple meant his master had to have many more genius disciples that were more capable. Thus the master himself would have to be really strong. Akata didn''t doubt if the master turned out to be a High Second Ranker.

    Pushing the matter to the back of his head for now Akata thought about his fight just now. "My Infinite Realms Power is much more powerful than I thought. It doesn''t increase my strength by much but it''s capable of altering others powers. When my power interacts with others, it sort of disrupts their flow of energy." Feeling jubilant, Akata sped up back to the Rock Bottom Sect.

    Upon his return, the Moon Cloud Corps were still eliminating the disciples of the sect at a fast pace.

    Mindlife was the most ferocious of them all. A light fog surrounded his figure that when it encompassed an enemy, they would start to lose control of their senses while their minds corroded into nothingness, turning them into mindless beings.

    Mindlife just had to stand in one spot and he could kill most of the people here but he didn''t. He wanted to see the ability of the other members.

    Life Ayy was the most outstanding, he was the third strongest of the Moon Cloud Corps with a strength that was at the 9th Grade First Rank. He could easily dominate most people under the Second Rank and, likewise with Akata and Mindlife, nobody in the Rock Bottom Sect could stop him.

    Mindlife also noticed this person. Being a Dragonknight he already knew of his identity.

    Life Ayy

    Real Name: Harbringer

    Strength: Peak 9th Grade First Rank

    Weapon: Sword

    Specialty: Moonlight Inner Element and Fire Core Element

    Mindlife watched Harbringer silently burn his enemies to death with a blue-white flame. His fire didn''t crackle or hiss, completely noiseless. All that could be heard were the wails and screeching of the members of the Rock Bottom Sect.

    Harbringer used to be a teacher at the sect but now he was one of the members of the Cloud Corps. He was only about 20 something but his intelligence and unique skill made him a force to be reckoned with.

    Turning his attention to the other members of the Moon Cloud Corps, Mindlife lightly nodded in approval.

    Life Bee

    Real Name: Penny

    Strength: 8th Grade First Rank

    Weapon: Morphing needles

    Specialty: Medicine and Star Inner Elements

    Life Sea

    Real Name: Bearlee

    Strength: 8th Grade First Rank

    Weapon: Mace

    Specialty: Softstone and Darkwater Inner Elements

    Life Ddee

    Real Name: Co''verr

    Strength: 8th Grade First Rank

    Weapon: Fan

    Specialty: Sound and Storm Inner Elements

    To be apart of the Cloud Corps one had to be adept at killing, assassination, and a plethora of other things. Only the top geniuses of the sect, minus the elders, even had a chance of joining. And not even most of the top geniuses were qualified in the end.

    One common trait amongst the members of the Cloud Corps was that they all scored rather high in the cabin trials. The Moon Cloud Corps especially scored high in the 9th Cabin Trial, the trial of mental fortitude.

    Akata himself was ranked number one on that trial.

    Arriving at the battlefield, Akata didn''t meet up with the others but concealed himself and watched. With his skill in the Illusion Inner Element, this was a simple task.

    Each member of the Cloud Corps had a special talent and were very unique from others. Each of their skills differed from others yet all could be used to assassinate.

    "Those bluish-white flames are completely silent and barely give off any energy. It would be hard to detect them even if you were prepared." Akata spread out his formless nature sense and rotated his crimson rune. His soul power mixed in with his nature energy. Using this, Akata could get a more "in depth" look at the abilities of everyone.

    "It seems Harbringer is capable of fusing the Moonlight Inner Element and Fire Core Element. I wonder how it exactly works." Although Akata could use his soul power to peer into the Elements someone used, he couldn''t figure out how exactly they used those Elements together.

    Also, he couldn''t identify an Element he wasn''t familiar with himself. The Moonlight Inner Element was an uncommon Element but Akata had long ago gotten insight of it through his past movement technique the Lunarsun Steps. He had to comprehend the Moonlight and Sunlight Inner Elements then. One also couldn''t forget the plethora of elemental rune cores located in his soul region¡­

    "Ah! Using the needles through the Star Inner Element. There''s another element mixed in but I can''t tell what it is¡­ must be the Medicine Element." "Bearlee''s fighting style is so fluid and overbearing at the same time! I can sense the Darkwater Inner Element and something similar to a mixture of the Water and Earth Core Elements, so that should be the Softstone Element. Interesting very interesting indeed."

    Akata was completely enamored when it came to fighting. He appreciated the complexity and skill associated with it. Since he was on the journey to reach the pinnacle, he would gladly take the time to thoroughly observe others fight.

    "I wonder what that ''sound storm'' is brewing up? Woah what''s going on? What kind of¡­" Akata looked over at Co''verr. A storm that covered half the battlefield had slowly been forming. As it did, the power it released made the remaining members of the Rock Bottom Sect start attacking each other out of fear. This technique that caused mass hysteria was truly too fearsome.

    Akata was astounded at the combinations of the Elements these people used. He wanted to know so bad how they used their attacks and skills. But they would need better opponents.

    Since the rest of the members of the Rock Bottom Sect were killing each other due to the strange storm, the Moon Cloud Corps silently pulled back from the battlefield.

    Akata appeared in front of Mindlife and the others in a flash of black light. He nodded his head towards the group, "Good work, no need to clean up let''s continue on our way."

    And just like that, the story of a sect suddenly being annihilated in a single day spread. Nobody knew who did it or how many were involved but they had to be powerful. The only ''evidence'' left was a storm that was nearly faded away. When someone approached too close to the storm they became fearful and attacked others.

    But by then, the Moon Cloud Corps were long gone. Leaving no trace to their whereabouts.

 Chapter 180: Blood Saintâ€™s Disciples

    "Life Ddee, although your power is indeed great and can affect a massive amount of enemies, concentrate it more so it doesn''t leave such a grand display. There are people who are capable of tracking you based on residual energy left at a scene. It was our first appearance so others won''t tie this to us to follow." Akata suddenly spoke out while on the journey towards Cemetery Hills.

    Akata was the number one disciple within the sect. His performance during the Cabin Trials a testament to this. Akata wasn''t named the best killer for nothing. His abnormal calmness, patience, speed, strength, and decisiveness are just some of the traits that shaped him into an unstoppable force.

    Life Ddee nodded his head, "Noted."

    The group barely spoke words to each other. Maybe it was because of the secrecy the Sect Leader made them go by, or the fact that they were still unfamiliar with each other. Either way, it was a boring journey.

    After the first mishap with the teleportation array, Akata led his team through forests, jungles, plains, canyons and other sorts of environments. With his Nature Sense and Plant Realm Power, traversing wildlands was like walking through his own backyard. Beasts of various strengths and sizes could be seen roaming around as they approached the Holy Beast Kingdom, but they were mostly easily avoided.

    Just like this, almost 2 months went by.

    During this time, the group had gotten to know each other much better. Since they all came from the same sect, the four Cloud Corps members finally figured out the identities of "Nolife" and "Mindlife". Though they would never actually say or show that they knew.

    Akata barely did any fighting during this trip, mostly letting the others handle the light work. It wasn''t that he was getting lazy or bored of fighting, his mind was focused on other things. But due to him not fighting, Akata saw that he actually liked observing others just as much as he liked being involved. Because of this, he would often train his Nature Sense and Soul Foresight to increase his own awareness and also his knowledge of the surroundings.

    Although Foresight was much better than simple sensing abilities, such as Nature Sense or Divine Sense, sensing was much more natural; especially Nature Sense. With Plant Realm Power, using Nature Sense was also a way for Akata to increase his knowledge of the Plant Realm and also cultivate its power.

    By now, Akata and his group had left the Mystic Empire and entered the Holy Beast Kingdom, their Red Cloud Sect located in the former, but they were still a bit of distance away from reaching Cemetery Hills.

    "Hmm?" Akata had his Nature Sense and Soul Foresight spread out and was observing the changes in nature when he sensed a rather strong aura approaching from behind. Since he could detect this aura, that meant the being it belonged to was within 299 meters of Akata.

    This was Akata''s absolute limit in terms of sensing. His soul definitely had the strength to stretch out further but his own level of strength was too weak to power his soul to reach that far. Akata felt ashamed because his senses hadn''t been able to go further out. But what he didn''t know was that 299 meters was the limit of Second Rankers.

    Akata didn''t pause or slow his pace as he observed this person. The person, on the other hand, seemed to also sense the group ahead and slowed their pace, keeping a safe distance from the group yet also following behind.

    Through Soul Foresight, Akata could passively communicate a bit with souls he could sense around him. Because of this, he could "read their intentions" before they act upon anything. Thus, Akata could confirm that the person following behind wasn''t there to harm them¡­ at least for now.

    It was at this time that two energy blasts in the shape of hands came rushing towards the group of 6.

    The Bludhaven Scythe appeared and Akata swung the blade toward the attacks, easily slicing them in half. As the attacks slowly dissipated Akata stopped his movements and looked ahead at the 3 people in front of his group.

    The 3 people each wore different clothing. A man had on pants with no shirt. A young adult male had on a blacked out outfit with a jacket to match, and the woman wore a simple pink jumpsuit. The young adult male had his hands up so he was clearly the one who had fired off the attacks earlier. A smile on his face.If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.

    "Are you the one who killed our lowly brother disciple?" Asked the young man. He still wore a smile on his face so it could be seen that he truly didn''t care about this "brother" of his.

    "These must be disciples of the Blood Saint, but how did they find me? There shouldn''t be any tracks to lead them here." Akata was surprised. His group had traveled a good distance within this month and a half, yet somehow these people had directly found him.

    Looking at the people, Akata could sense their power. The young man and woman gave off the energy of a Low Second Ranker while the shirtless man had a strength higher than them. Akata couldn''t tell what his strength was.

    Seeing as how the masked group was silent even after he asked his question, the young man started losing his patience.

    "Heh. Don''t wanna answer I see. That proves you''re guilty. Well then receive your punishment on behalf of our master." With that the young man sent out another palm blast directed at the group. He planned to eliminate everyone in one move.

    Akata furrowed his brows. He could handle the young man by himself and have the rest of the group take on the woman, but that left the shirtless man open to cause havoc.

    But suddenly¡­

    "You, back there. You think you can hide behind your group? The whole Rock Bottom Sect was annihilated, you think we''re dumb enough to think a group of Mortal Ranked people can do this by themselves? Hahaha! Think again." The shirtless man laughed hysterically then vanished.

    Boom. Bang. Bow.

    Akata could feel through his Nature Sense and Soul Foresight that the shirtless man and person trailing behind his group started fighting.

    "Alas, I happened to drag someone into our problems. Luckily their strength is capable of contending against the shirtless man."

    "You all take on pinky over there, I''ll handle nighttime over here." Akata already took out his Bludhaven Scythe and let out a strike while he was speaking, dispersing the young man''s attack.

    After that, Akata sent waves of black light toward the young man with a few strikes from his scythe while dashing off.

    The young man was irritated. This was the second time his attack was stopped by Akata, and so easily at that.

    "This trifling Mortal Ranker, I''m already at the Earthly Rank but he can still resist me?" The young man took in a slow breath to calm down as he waved his hand instantly obliterating the attacks Akata sent his way. "Blood Sister Holly, take care of this group of trash. I''ll play with that black masked fool." Without waiting for the woman to respond the young man went in pursuit of Akata.

    Blood Sister Holly rolled her eyes at his departing figure. "Blood Brother Crush, you owe me for having my hands dirtied."

    "Humph. I should say the same thing." Mindlife stepped forward. As he did, his aura started to transform and a fog started to waft from his body filling the area. His lower body seemed as if it were becoming incorporeal.

    Blood Sister Holly turned her attention to Mindlife and the group around him. Her brows slightly raised.

    "Kid! Come here and receive your death willingly! If I have to chase any further I''ll dismember your body piece by piece." Blood Brother Crush was enraged. Akata''s speed wasn''t inferior to his own so he couldn''t catch up to him.

    All of a sudden, Akata stopped running and turned toward Crush. Akata unleashed his power and struck out with his scythe once more.

    "Tch. Measly 10th Grade. I don''t know how you''re so fast or strong but your resistance is futile in front of me." Stretching out his hand, Crush attempted to crush the incoming scythe waves but then his eyes enlarged and he quickly darted to the side, successfully evading the attack.

    "That attack just now¡­ it already had the strength of a 2nd Grade Second Ranker. Could he be hiding his power level?" Crush was at a loss.

    Akata on the other hand was just getting started. He had reached the 10th Grade a month ago and needed a worthy opponent to test his strength on. The 10th Grade for Akata meant that his combined bases had all reached the 10th Grade at the same time. His Infinite Realms Power thus had a great boost in strength.

    Stepping forward, Akata''s aura took on an abrupt change. He instantly activated his Bloodline Form as strength poured through him. Rotating his crimson rune, Akata was just about to attack again when he noticed something.

    "Huh? My crimson rune seems to be changing. Almost like it''s evolving." Through his Bloodline Form, Akata could feel more of a connection to his crimson rune.

    Ever since Akata took the Ancestral Awakening Pill, his crimson rune seemed to be the most affected out of anything. Although the changes weren''t world shocking, Akata could definitely notice these changes.

    Right now however, wasn''t the time to focus on the changes of the crimson rune so Akata put this matter to the back of his mind for now.

    While in his Bloodline Form, Akata could unleash his full power. Gathering his Infinite Realms Power, Akata struck out again with his scythe. This time a black wave 5 meters wide launched toward Crush.

    Crush could sense the strength within this attack and unleashed his full power, 3rd Grade Second Ranker. Using utter force he crushed the wave of scythe energy with his hands. He brought out a silver staff and twirled it around.

    "Seems like you have skill kid. I''m gonna tear it out of you."

    Woosh! The two launched at each other and began exchanging blows. Surprisingly, Akata was able to go toe-to-toe with Crush.

    "But how? He''s only at the 10th Grade of the Mortal Rank and hasn''t even reached the peak yet!" Crush was going crazy at this point. He couldn''t understand how someone so young and weak could be so powerful.

    Akata was matching Crush blow for blow and on the surface it looked as if he was having an easy time but in truth he was struggling to keep up. After all, he was still in the First Rank and was facing an opponent almost at the Mid Second Rank by himself. It was already astounding that Akata could display this level of strength at his level. Even Swordlife wasn¡¯t this strong when he was at the 10th Grade of the First Rank.