《Saga of the Overgod》


 Chapter 1: Encounter

    Out in the universe, there''s a world where you could see tall mountains, vast oceans, as well as forests with different kinds of species; there are birds, reptiles, mammals and many other animals. Surprisingly, there are beasts that can do what humans can do too.

    At some distance away from the forest, you will see a lively city, bustling with different activities. There you can see the huge number of humans and beasts perfectly co-exist with each other. Along one street, they buy and sell items and on another, they are laughing, and yet another they are arguing and fighting.

    The places described here make up just 0.1 percent out of the overall land mass of this particular world. It''s so big that if you take attempt to tour it, it will take roughly a hundred years for you to finish.

    When you look up, you can see a beautiful blue sky filled with clouds and the three suns from which emanated different colors of blinding light. However, if you look closely, you could see that there is actually just one sun! And that is the one in the middle. The others on the left and right side have a human-figure inside the light! Or you could say that the human-figures inside are the sources of the blinding light! The one on the left is violet, and the other one is green.

    It was a strange sight, but from what you can tell from the expressions of people and other beings in the vicinity, these are just ordinary and nothing strange at all. You can just see panic within the eyes of people and other beings. Clearly, there is something unexpected that will happen.

    A few moments later, the two ''suns'' emanating strange light began to move towards each other. Suddenly, the hands of the two entities within the light clenched into fists. A deafening blast could be heard as these two people punched each other.

    BOOOOM!

    "Because you snatched away what is mine, I will snatch away your life Tromer!" said the man radiating green light with an angry face. Suddenly, a sword materialized in his hands.

    The sword is a huge single edged sword about one meter long and half a meter wide. Its blade is sharp and radiates something like crimson aura as the light of the sun reflects on its point. On its guard, a skull is swallowing the body of the sword. This sword gives a feeling of something sinister and vile.

    "This is the Demon Bone Sword, a legendary sword that I got from the Ruins of Demon God Sect. It is wielded by the Ancestor of the Demon God Sect, with this, you will surely DIE!" Angrily shouted the man with the green light.

    Immediately after, he dashed forward and swung the sword.

    Before the sword hit Tromer, a circular shield rapidly expanded in front of him until it was big enough to protect his entire body from the sword strike.

    When the sword hit the shield, small cracks appeared at first, but after a single breath of time, the cracks started to spread until the shield was broken into pieces after several seconds. He was then propelled back a few meters away due to the impact of the sword strike.

    "I will never give this back to you Darnce! I have already gotten it, it is now MINE!"said Tromer. After that, he takes a look at his spatial pouch and after a moment of hesitation,

    "I will use this to escape and teleport away from this bastard, and although I''m not sure where this would take me, this is my only way to leave this danger." Then, a metallic cube instantly appeared in front of him. The metallic cube is transforming to become a... teleportation portal!

    The process of transforming is quite fast compared to others of its kind but considering it was done in the middle of a battle, for Tromer it was slow!

    Tromer must hold on until the teleportation portal is ready for use, because after that he''s saved, but if not, he''s doomed to die while waiting for his hope to live.

    When Darnce saw the metallic cube transforming into a teleportation portal his eyes widened and without hesitation he held the Demon Bone Sword with his two hands and dashed forward to attack Tromer.

    "I, Darnce Woventop, will do all I can to kill you. The enmity between us will never fade away until one of us perishes, and YOU will be that one!" With that, he gripped the Demon Bone Sword harder, and it began to emit dark-red light.A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

    By now, Darnce''s appearance was terrifying to the extreme due to his furious face combined with the vicious-looking sword. Suddenly, He vanished in the middle of the air and reappeared 10-meters away from Tromer.

    Darnce swung his sword, initiating an attack against Tromer. With Darnce''s speed, Tromer didn''t have enough time to completely dodge the attack. Instantly, Tromer''s left arm was severed away and a huge wound could be seen in his stomach!

    Tromer let out an anguished howl. Soon, he began to make a counterattack against Darnce. The ground trembled as they exchange numerous blows.

    It was clear that Tromer was only buying time for the portal. Darnce realized this and he became even more furious than before.

    After some moments, the teleportation portal was now ready to be used, and at the same time Tromer''s injuries worsened. When he saw the portal was ready, he immediately dashed towards it and vanished.

    When Darnce saw that Tromer is now nowhere to be seen, he let out a furious howl.

    AAARRGH!

    There are no traces of Tromer to be seen, in short, he successfully... Escaped.

    ---------

    On the other hand...

    There was a man in a certain world called ''Mortal World,'' known as Farjan Dowter, the grandson of his clan''s leader. He is now 17 years old, he''s not handsome like others but also not ugly, his hair is naturally white, and a pair of beautiful eyes that add some attractiveness could be seen on his oval-shaped face. He is tall and also muscular due to his various experiences.

    This Mortal world is not a very large world, unlike the world where Tromer and Darnce fought, but it is not small too. It is filled with green scenery and deep forests. A hundred meters away from a small river near a forest beside a mountain, a small village with houses made of wood and other lightweight materials could be seen. A crappy wooden fence that is half a meter high, made from what are probably the excess wood from the construction of the houses, serves as the territory''s border and sort of defense for the clan. In the middle of the territory is where the only stone-made building in the village stands. The Ancestral Mansion was built using stones and the white of the eggs as sort of adhesive. This is the village where Farjan and the whole Dowter clan lives.

    The Dowter Clan is not a big and prosperous clan like others, but everyone in the clan is on good terms with each other. Although his family is poor, Farjan is a hardworking and brilliant man. You will always see him in different areas in the vicinity of Bigfield City because he has many jobs in the area. Sometimes you will see him carrying heavy things, working in construction sites, feeding pigs, selling vegetables in the market and much more! Because of this, Farjan is well-known throughout the city.

    The other thing that Farjan always does is to secretly listen to the one and only Institute in the city, the Bigfield Higher Institute. You can see him lurking at the edge of the classroom window even if it''s on the second floor!

    One time, he hid in the cleaning tool closet of a classroom just to listen to the lessons of the professor when suddenly, he sneezed! He did everything he could to conceal it, but a little sound was still heard throughout the classroom.

    ACHII!

    "What was that?" Asked the professor.

    Then a particular student answered. "That''s me, sir! I tried to conceal my sneeze but, the sound has escaped my palm. I apologize for disturbing the class." At the same time acting like he is about to sneeze with his nose already red. After that, he secretly forms his hands into a thumbs-up gesture at his back that indicates "I got you, man!"

    This man is Holdbert, Farjan''s friend. He is from a middle-class clan, so he can afford to study. Thanks to him, Farjan breathed a sigh of relief.

    ---

    Farjan always gives the money that he earned to his parents. Surely, he is a lovable and responsible son.

    "Farj, you do not need to give this money to me, it is the fruit of your hard work." Said his mother to Farjan.

    "Mom, please take this money. I''ve worked hard just to help our family and not myself only."

    "But you always give us all the money you''ve earned and do not leave any for yourself. You know, if you did not give us the money you earned, by now, you would have been able to start learning in the Bigfield Higher Institute. You''re a brilliant child; you have a lot of potential."His mother said with a sad face.

    "That''s fine mom, even if I have a second chance to decide again on how I will manage the money I earn, I will choose to give it to you again." With that, he and his mother hugged each other.

    The next day.

    At some distance away from where the place of the Dowter clan is located, strangely, a black vortex with blue, violet and white swirling inside it in a spiral motion appeared.Measuring its diameter would give you one meter.. At a closer look, you will notice that a human figure is coming out from it.

    The man has a severed arm, a huge hole in his stomach and numerous wounds scattered all over his body. This figure is obviously Tromer! He has escaped with severe injuries using the metallic cube as a teleportation portal, transporting him here to the Mortal World.

    After stepping out from the portal, Tromer managed to take three-steps away. After that, he lost consciousness and fell towards the ground.

    Several meters away, Farjan is walking back home happily, carrying a basket with some vegetables. He had just finished selling vegetables in the market and has profited well. After walking a few more meters, he saw a ''corpse'' lying on the ground with numerous wounds and with no left arm.

    He immediately walked cautiously towards the ''corpse'' and began to inspect it. Soon enough, he reached a conclusion...

    "He''s still alive!" He said.

 Chapter 2: I Will Teach You How to Cultivate

    Farjan carried the ''corpse'' that was Tromer and then walked faster back to the clan.

    When he reached the clan, the other clan members saw him soaked with blood from the person he carries on his shoulder. Instantly, they rushed forward to help him in carrying Tromer until they reached their house. There, they took care and helped Tromer to heal his wounds.

    "His wounds are severe! What inhuman person would do this to him?!"Said the old man treating Tromer.

    "I just saw him when I was heading back home," Farjan said.

    "Maybe he was attacked by the bandits, and they robbed him." Said another man.

    "This guy would have died within 12 hours if he wasn''t brought here." Said the old man.

    "What should we do to him? We can give him primary treatment here, but if we treat him until he completely healed, then our little resources will be empty afterward!"The other man said.

    "Our only choice is to primarily treat him, but eventually, he will die." The old man said.

    "Is there any other way?" Farjan asked, full of worry.

    "The decision is for the elders and clan leader to make. We cannot act based on our own opinions."The old man said.

    After they discussed how to handle the situation. Farjan immediately went to his grandfather, the Clan Leader to ask him how they will handle the situation.

    "Farj, my grandson, even if I''m the clan leader,I cannot decide without consulting the elders. Besides, that man is not a clan member, he''s a stranger! Even you, you don''t know him! How can we use our resources for him?" Said Farjan''s Grandfather.

    "But Grandpa! I can''t endure seeing someone die in front of me without doing something!"Farjan said.

    The clan leader looked at Farjan''s eyes. After seeing that he was full of determination, he sighed and said "Okay, we will have a meeting with the Elders tonight, that''s all I can do for you. Whatever our decision is... That''s all."

    Later, the night has come, and the meeting will soon start. One by one, the elders have arrived at the Ancestral Mansion. The Dowter Clan has a total of four Elders. Normally, they wouldn''t attend this useless meeting for a stranger, but considering that the clan leader is the one who summoned them, they weren''t able to do anything, and were forced to attend. The Clan Leader is the appointed leader of their clan by the past generation, as well as the representative of the clan. If they disrespect him, it is as if they disrespect the whole clan.

    After a few moments, the Clan Leader finally arrived. Beside him, a young man is standing with a worried face.

    The meetingofficially started. At first, no one dared to talk, but a moment later the Third Elder suddenly spoke.

    "This meeting is nonsense! Do we need to have a meeting and give our resources to a stranger?"He asked angrily.

    "That''s right! Besides, has anyone forgotten that our clan has declined over the years since our resources are now limited to the extreme? How can a stranger, not a member of the clan benefit from it!?" Said the Fourth Elder.

    The room is silent, and you can only hear the snorting of the Third and Fourth Elder.

    Then Farjan suddenly stood and looked coldly towards the Third and Fourth Elder and said, "This is not about if he is a stranger or not! This is about the fact that he is severely injured and we are capable of healing him is enough as a reason!"

    After a moment of thought, "It''s okay for me to give our resources."The First Elder suddenly said coolly.A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

    "And what about you?" The Clan Leader said turning to look at the Second Elder.

    "I''m neutral. Said the Second Elder lacking enthusiasm.

    Two elders are against the decision, one is neutral, and one is pro, and when you add the Clan Leader which is on Farjan''s side, there are two that support the decision..

    Because of the outcome of the meeting, the decision made is that 50 percent of the resources would be given to heal Tromer''s injury.

    Two weeks have passed since the meeting. Now, Tromer''s injuries are slightly healed and his condition is gradually improving over the days due to the joint effort of Farjan''s family and other clan members.

    Three more days passed. The sun is about to rise and Farjan is going to the small farm of the clan to harvest vegetables to sell. Suddenly, he saw a man at the edge of a mountain looking off into the distance. Strangely, within the right hand of the man, he saw that there were pearl-like things floating. Farjan''s eyes widened and a look of disbelief could be seen on his face.

    Later, surprisingly, the pearl-like things with varying colors started to move in a circular motion and then suddenly, they combined! They became a larger violet pearl-like thing. Tromer extended his only arm and the violet pearl-like thing started to move forward. When it was 8 meters away from him, it suddenly exploded like fireworks with a myriad of colors! It was a wonderful sight but even if it exploded, there was no sound heard at all.

    Farjan''s jaw dropped. He couldn''t believe what he was seeing and reached a conclusion that the man that he saved was not an ordinary man?!

    When the remnants of the ''fireworks'' were gone. Tromer looked down at the left side of the mountain, and there he saw Farjan, still shocked at what he had seen.

    Farjan closed his eyes, trying to convince himself that the things he saw were figments of his imagination. After a second, he opened them again and look towards the mountain, and he saw nothing. There''s no man on the mountain at all!

    Farjan laughed at himself. "Surely, it is just my imagination or I just walk while dreaming. I should''ve slept early yesterday! Hahaha!"

    Then unexpectedly he heard a cool voice that came from behind him asking,"What are you laughing at?"

    He turned his head and saw a man with only right arm and his body covered with bandages.

    Farjan couldn''t believe what was happening, "You..."

    Tromer opened his mouth and said, "Me? What?"

    Farjan is shocked to the extreme and still couldn''t believe what was happening. Using his index finger, he touched Tromer as if to see if he was real or just a ghost. And when the finger hit Tromer''s chest, it didn''t pass through it, instead, it stopped there, touching Tromer''s chest.

    Even when Farjan felt Tromer''s chest through his index finger, he still couldn''t believe it. He couldn''t believe the what he had seen before. From the pearl-like things hovering in his hands then the transformation into a larger pearl-like thing then suddenly exploding like fireworks up to the point where he suddenly vanished reappeared behind his back.

    Then Farjan asked while trembling, "You''re real?!"

    "What do you think?" Tromer said cooly. After that, Farjan used his index finger to touch Tromer again in different parts of his body.

    "Aaaaww! You touched my wound!" But Farjan stubbornly continued to touch and check Tromer.

    "Aaaaa! Damn it! I have wounds there too!"

    "Aw! That''s a bruise! Did you see it?!"

    And when Farjan is attempted to touch his stomach. "Not that one! Noooo!"Said Tromer feeling pained.

    "Ouch! Stop touching me! I''m not a ghost! I''m real!

    Tromer tried to evade all of Farjan''s touches, but he was persistent.

    "Okay, stop! I surrender!"Said Tromer raising his hand."Let''s stop this child''s play! Listen to me kid."Farjan stopped what he was doing and began to listen to him."I know that you''re the one who saved me, I thank you from the bottom of my heart and because of that, I will teach you how to... Cultivate!"

    "Cultivate?" Farjan doesn''t have a clue about what Tromer was saying. After a moment, a thought ran through his mind.

    "Aha! You''re going to teach me how to cultivate pearls!"Because of what he had seen before, the pearl-like things in Tromer''s hands, he thought that Tromer was cultivating pearls.

    "Pearls are expensive, and when I try to sell pearls... I''m going to be rich!"Farjan said excitedly.

    Tromer knew that the people here in the city are all mortals. After staying here for almost 3 weeks, he became aware of that fact, that all people in this world are mortals. That''s why he decided to teach Farjan about cultivation.

    "No! Not pearl cultivation! Listen, I will introduce you to the world of cultivation, where people can cast fire and lightning, move dozens of mountains with just a wave of a hand and make a sea with a thought," Tromer said.

    Farjan''s eyes widened. "Really? Can I do that?"

    "Of course, but I''ll warn you, when you enter the world of cultivation, danger is lurking everywhere, and you will always have to take a risk and compete with others! There, perseverance is needed, and I think you always persevere and never give up, so it''s not a problem for you anymore. I will ask you again, are you willing to enter the world of cultivation?"

    "Absolutely!" Said Farjan excitedly. He answered, full of determination and doubt having no place in his mind anymore. Now, he believed that all the things he had seen from Tromer before were real. He believed that this wasn''t a dream.

    "That''s the spirit! Okay from now on, call me... Master Tromer!"Said Tromer proudly.

 Chapter 3: Unsealing the Spirit

    Tromer had no disciples before. Farjan is the first and maybe the last.

    "You are now a disciple of mine, and your first mission would be to... build a house for me."

    Tromer doesn''t have his own house, he''s only living in Farjan''s house, that''s why he demanded a house. Besides, he can''t build a house on his own because he is seriously injured, and if he forces himself, the process of healing will slow down or his wounds would bleed again.

    Farjan looked blankly at Tromer. Clearly, he didn''t expect that his first mission was to build a house for his master. He thought that his mission was somewhat connected to cultivation, but whatever thinking he does, he can''t see how the two are connected.

    After a few seconds, "What are you waiting for? Start now! Or else I will not teach you how to cultivate."

    After hearing this, Farjan gritted his teeth and began to move to begin building the house.

    Pok! Pok! Pok!

    Rrrrr! Rrrrr! Rrrr

    The sound of hammering and wood-cutting could be heard in the mountain as Farjan buildt his master''s house.

    -------

    The sun was beginning to set and the sky was already orange. A loud shout could be heard from some distance away.

    "Haaaaaaaa!" A man shouted while holding a hammer in his hands. It''s Farjan. After a full day of working, he finally finished his master''s house. Sweat could be seen all over his body.

    "Master! I''m finished!"He said while panting.

    "Don''t shout, please! Oh! You''re finished, okay you can now leave and take a rest. Come back tomorrow, and we will begin the lesson regarding cultivation."Tromer said cooly.

    Farjan excitedly left his master''s house to sleep and let time pass, so that tomorrow, he can start cultivating immediately.

    The next day...

    Farjan was so excited that he got up early, and the sun had not yet started to rise. Because of that, he did not go to his master, for now, he went to his family''s farm and harvested some vegetables. But instead of personally selling the vegetables, he went to the market and asked a person who he became friends with after selling there for numerous years.

    Because Farjan will now start learning cultivation, he can abandon some jobs, but that doesn''t mean that he will abandon all of his jobs and little businesses. He still needs to give some support to his parents. After all, his father has long been dead, and he takes the responsibilities of being the father. His mother is busy making some clothes to be sold so, he doesn''t have a choice.

    After doing the things that must be done, the sun has now risen. Farjan does some stretching and then after a few minutes, he began to walk towards a certain mountain called ''Mt. Tri-mus''.

    When he reached the mountaintop, he saw a simple house, the one which he created for his master. There, he saw a middle-aged man looking around 30 to 40 years old, holding a cup of coffee sitting on a chair in front of the house. It was obviously Tromer.

    When Tromer saw his disciple walking towards him with a smile of excitement, he couldn''t help but smile too. He took a sip of coffee and after putting down his cup, his smile was now nowhere to be seen.

    "Looks like you''re excited."

    "Uh... Yes?"Farjan replied, a bit bashful, looking towards the ground."

    "That''s okay Farjan, in truth, I like that kind of attitude. When you''re always like that I think you will advance in cultivation faster."He said coolly.

    Tromer is clearly pleased by his disciple, but his face contradicts what he feels.

    After that, Tromer went inside his house. After a while, he emerged from his house holding some books. He put it in front of Farjan and said, " Study these books. After you finished studying and memorizing the things written in there, head back here and I will personally teach you." With that, he turned and returned inside his house.

    When Farjan saw the books in front of him, his eyes suddenly brightened, the reason? It''s because all his life he only touched a few books and if you count them, you will only use one hand. Farjan loved to study because he believed that knowledge is one of the greatest weapons in the world. But having the greatest weapon, for him, it means that he must have the greatest wealth.

    He immediately took all of the books and walked towards a tree where he read. He chose a book entitled ''Introduction to Cultivation''. The book was one and a half inches thick, but regardless of its thickness, Farjan still excitedly opened it and began to read.

    There, he saw countless information regarding cultivation. It included information on how to start cultivating, how cultivation works, what is needed to be done, what are the essential equipment needed and much more!Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators!

    After he turned to a certain page, he saw how cultivation was divided by different realms of power. The first one was the Spiritual Stage, where you will cultivate to connect your spirit to the energy in the surroundings. It was divided into nine different levels and as you advance to different levels, you will become more powerful.

    After finishing cultivating in the Spiritual Stage, you will now start cultivating in the Soul Stage. There, the soul aspect is strengthened, up to the point where battles are fought using the soul force coming from the strengthened soul. This was also divided into nine levels.

    The third one was the Profound Stage. Here, you will cultivate and make yourself ''profound'' in the aspects of cultivation, also divided into nine levels.

    These three levels were only part of the Earth Realm. There were higher realms aside from the Earth realm. There is the Heaven Realm, and after that is the legendary realm which all people dream of... The Celestial Realm. All of the realms were divided into three stages and nine levels. As you advance higher and higher, the more it difficult it becomes to cultivate.

    Farjan carefully read all of the information and put it all down in his mind. As he read, you can sometimes see a shocked expression on his face after reading some phrases. Clearly, he has read some shocking things about cultivation.

    When the afternoon came, he stopped reading and went to look for something to eat. He went to the deep forest and there, he saw a wild boar which he hunted and killed. After 10 minutes, Farjan emerged from the forest holding a dead boar.

    Due to his status in life, hunting beasts is an easy job for him. He hunts wild animals to eat and sometimes to sell on the market.

    He went directly towards his master''s house and asked him if he would like to take some. Tromer sliced a part of the boar''s belly.

    Unexpectedly, Tromer gave the sliced part to Farjan and he returned inside holding the large part of the boar''s meat.

    Farjan was shocked by the scene, but still, he roasted the sliced meat and gritted his teeth and then ate the meat. After that, he continued reading.

    Read, read, read, and read, that was the only thing that kept Farjan busy for almost all of his time. He kept on reading until the fifth day of the week arrived.

    The sun was hung up high in the sky, it was afternoon and Farjan was walking up to the top of Mt. Tri-mus excitedly, why? Because today, he had just finished reading all the books that his master gave him. There were a total of ten books in his hands and all of that, are just books about the fundamentals of cultivation. He will return all of these books and after that, he will start the ''true'' cultivation under the guidance of his master.

    After a few minutes, he arrived at the front of his master''s house and then knocked the door multiple times because of his excitement.

    Knock! Knock! Knock! Knock...

    Inside, Tromer was focused on doing something to his body, especially to the parts which had severe wounds.

    "I can''t heal these wounds completely; it had a curse! That damned Darnce! What kind of weapon is that Demon Bone Sword?! It can inflict a curse on me even if I am in the Heaven Realm...urgh! Right now I''m only in the Earth Realm because of that thing! " He furiously said while gritting his teeth.

    Indeed, the Demon Bone Sword was no ordinary weapon. It had a curse that was very hard to treat. Tromer had done everything in order to remove the curse but no good results appeared. As for the treatment given to him by Farjan and his family, they are just ''first-aid''.It was not enough, even if all the clan''s resources were to be used. He himself is the one who treated him using the methods of cultivators.

    After a moment he heard multiple knocking sounds from his door that made him frown. He was expecting something because of the way the door is knocked. He expected that some emergency has happened but when he opened the door, he saw a familiar face holding books and an excited look on their face.

    When Tromer saw his disciple, he said, " Why are you here?" And when he saw the books on his disciple''s hands..."Don''t tell me you can''t handle reading those books and decided to quit?"

    "Of course not! I''m went to bring these books back to you and start the true cultivation."

    When Tromer heard what Farjan said he couldn''t help but be shocked. "Don''t tell me he finished reading those books in just five days?" he thought.

    He couldn''t believe it, so he again asked a question, " Did you read everything that was written in them? Or did you just scan all of those books?"

    When Tromer started cultivation, he didn''t read all of the written things in the books, he just scanned it, so he thought that maybe, Farjan did the same thing too.

    "Of course I read it all! After all, it is required for newbies in cultivation, and this is my first time having this many books, so I''m very encouraged."

    "So you''re a knowledge-loving man huh... If you want to read more I can give you more books. As for that books you hold, you don''t need to give that back. Those are just trash in my spatial pouch."

    When Farjan heard the words ''spatial pouch'' he couldn''t help but be shocked. Because of what he had learned from the books that Tromer gave, spatial pouches were pouches that stored almost everything, even something as large as his clan''s Ancestral Mansion.

    "You have a spatial pouch?!" He asked with surprise.

    Seeing this, Tromer couldn''t help but laugh. Spatial pouches are ordinary things for cultivators, and he had many of those.

    "I''ll give you one when you enter the first level of Spiritual Stage, because the spatial pouch is operated using spiritual energy. That will also be my congratulatory gift. But before that, we must first unseal your Spirit."

    "Unseal my spirit? There are no things written in books regarding unsealing the spirit before entering the spiritual realm!"

    "That''s right, but in your case, it must be done. I don''t know the reason why your spirit is sealed, in fact, all of the people here in this world have their spirit sealed."

    After that Tromer produced a brown-colored potion and a torch with no fire. He didn''t give time for Farjan to speak or ask again. He gave the torch to Farjan for him to hold. Then, he drew a circular strange pattern on the ground.

    When the pattern was finished, Tromer commanded Farjan to stand in the middle of the strange pattern holding the torch. Tromer put the potion in the part where the torch is supposed to emit fire. Then he lit the torch.

    When the fire started to burn, the strange pattern suddenly emitted a dazzling blue light. It became brighter and brighter as time passed by. After a minute, it began to emit blinding light and when that happened, the torch''s fire began to burn stronger than before.

    Then suddenly, after some time, the torch fire was extinguished, and the glowing lights started to fade away.

    Farjan felt refreshed after that. As if some severe disease was now gone from his body. The unsealing of his soul was a success!

    "Now, you can finally start cultivating because the chains that bounded you are now gone. Do some rest and adapt to the changes that occurred to you."

    "Thank you, master." Farjan bowed deeply and an expression of joy could be seen all over his body.

    After that, he went back to his house to rest and to adapt, and started to explore the changes in himself.

 Chapter 4: Oppression of the Sofori clan

    At Farjan''s house...

    Farjan was sitting cross-legged as he contemplated upon the changes within his body. He discovered that, now, he could vaguely sense the different fluctuations of energy on his surroundings, but only at a very minimal level. Afterall, he just started when his spirit was unsealed. But still, the great shock could be seen on his face, because he could now see some things that shocked him. For example, the different colors of glowing dust floating in the surroundings that represented different types of elements.

    If other people could see what he had seen, surely, they would have the same reaction.

    After a few more minutes, he decided to take a rest, because that is what his doctor said, master rather.

    The next day...

    Unexpectedly, Farjan got up late, and when he saw what time it is, he quickly went out and headed to the top of Mt. Tri-mus.

    It was not because Tromer might get angry and scold him, but Farjan just wanted to start early and take advantage of having much more time. After all, Tromer didn''t say an exact time on when they will start.

    A few minutes later, Farjan arrived at Tromer''s house. Tromer was working on something in his makeshift laboratory. The laboratory itself was small, but the apparatus are high quality. He was working on some potions for his injuries and the curse. After hearing the knocking sounds coming from his door, he let Farjan open it.

    As Farjan walked inside, the makeshift laboratory piqued his interest.

    "You''re an alchemist?" Farjan had that idea, thanks to the books he read.

    "Uhm... Yes? And partly no. I am only an apprentice alchemist so; I don''t have deep knowledge about this branch."

    Tromer was indeed just an apprentice alchemist. Before, Tromer was just a low-level cultivator and he didn''t have many resources. So he decided to go to an alchemy school and there, he became an apprentice alchemist of his master in alchemy.

    "Why is there a problem?"

    "It''s just from what the books said, alchemy is helpful for cultivators. Alchemists could make potions of different kinds and variations that could help us on the path of cultivation."

    "You''re right kid, but alchemy is not as easy as it is said. There are only a few grandmasters in alchemy, why? Because it is so hard that even I, am only an apprentice alchemist."

    Farjan looked at the apparatus in the room and the glowing liquid inside of some of them. He reached towards a certain potion with a dark-violet color, but before his hand touched it, Tromer slapped his hands.

    "Do not touch anything here without knowing it first and asking for my permission."

    After that, Tromer got something from his spatial pouch and gave it to Farjan.

    "That''s all the books regarding alchemy that I have. I know that you are interested in it. So take them and study. They are all about the fundamentals of alchemy." Tromer gave eight books to Farjan.

    Tromer didn''t have enough time to clean his spatial pouch so that''s why he still had those books regarding the introduction to cultivation and fundamentals of alchemy. Thankfully, that was the situation, if not, then Farjan might not have had something to read as a basis.

    "Don''t mind those books, for now, your goal is the enter the spiritual stage and advance to the first level of it."

    After that, Tromer instructed Farjan on what he was going to do.

    Farjan sat down cross-legged immediately. He was so excited because this was the time where the true cultivation will start. He started to do what Tromer instructed him to do.

    ''Feel your surroundings and become a part of it. Let the energy of the surroundings flow into your spirit. Refine the elements and let it circulate through your body. Make the energy yours and take control of it.''

    As Farjan was cultivating, he felt the surroundings and the energy in it. He felt refreshed by the sensation of doing this.

    Different colors of elements were circulating around him. As if he was the center of it all. More and more elements and energies surrounded him as time passed by.

    His spirit started to shake, and if he continued this, when the night comes, a change would probably happen to his spirit.

    I''m feeling it!

    By that time Tromer went back to what he was doing in the laboratory.

    The Mortal World is not a world of cultivators, but it could be said to be a huge treasure trove for the alchemists. The reason is that, although the people here are ''crippled'' the world itself is not crippled and many medicinal plants are growing here. So that''s why it''s a great help for him.

    Even the rare plants in other worlds are common here.

    As for why no alchemists nor cultivators are going to this world to seize it is unknown.This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

    This world has many mysteries that are not yet solved.

    When the night came, as to be expected, something happened to Farjan. The energy in his surroundings is started to build up and form something.

    It was a figure the same as a human. This figure was formed by yellow motes of light and was translucent. It was Farjan''s spirit.

    When reaching the first level of Spiritual Stage, one must form their spirit outside their body using the energy and the refined elements.

    Tromer was working on potioneering, so he didn''t have time to spend on these trivial things. Besides, he already gave the instructions to Farjan so, there was nothing left to worry about.

    Following Tromer''s instructions, after the spirit is formed, Farjan will now start to absorb it carefully. This will become his cultivation base.

    Cultivation base is the foundation of a cultivator when they start cultivating. Without it, advancing to the next levels would be impossible.

    Farjan earnestly absorbed the energy from his surroundings while his master is made some potions.

    At the same time...

    Tromer was putting all of the medicinal plants in a particular laboratory apparatus. Many rare plants could be seen in it. Clearly, Tromer put all of the medicinal plants that he thought would help in his treatment, especially for those curse healing medicinal plants, without even thinking if it might have a bad result.

    Just as Farjan was absorbing the energies and refined elements, the medicinal plants in Tromer''s flask that he held started to melt. But when the time came where it would be completely melted, suddenly, the flask started to show signs of collapse, as it is slowly breaking apart.

    It couldn''t handle the energy coming from the combined medicinal plants. After a few seconds, the flask exploded!

    When it exploded, Tromer immediately put down the potion and let it go fearfully, as it might sever his one and only arm left behind.

    Farjan, who was currently absorbing the energies, was completely clueless on what has happened. He needed to focus on absorbing and no one could stop him. If someone disturbed him, it might have a bad result in the foundation of his cultivation base.

    Because all Tromer had said was to absorb the energies from his surroundings, Farjan didn''t notice that he was absorbing the energy originated from the half-finished potion that exploded, along with the energies and elements.

    Tromer didn''t know what to do. He was adept in fighting, but not in these kinds of things regarding alchemy. He had no way to remove the scattered medicinal plants'' energies at all. All he could do was to watch worriedly as Farjan absorbed the random energies.

    Farjan''s facial expression was now different from before. You could now see that he was having a difficult time absorbing the energies.

    Farjan kept on absorbing until the next day.

    It was now around morning and the sun has risen. In contrast to the light, Farjan''s face had become dark and grim because of the increased in difficulty.

    After some hours passed, Farjan''s difficulties gradually lessened as he already absorbed most of the energy from the medicinal plants.

    After a few more moments, he finished absorbing the energies. He then felt something in his body. The flow of energies and elemental particles through his spirit.

    He had already successfully entered the first level of the Spiritual Stage. As for the effects of the failed potion, Farjan didn''t know a thing about it.

    Farjan suddenly heard a voice saying, " Are you okay, kid?"

    "Do you feel something strange?"

    After looking at the source of the voice, Farjan saw Tromer. As he saw his master, he couldn''t believe what he was seeing. His master''s clothes were tattered, the surroundings were in a mess, and the makeshift laboratory was gone!

    "What happened here?"

    "Just some potioneering problems," Tromer said.

    He told Farjan the whole story of what had happened.

    "And that''s what happened. So, do you feel something strange in your body? Tell me."

    "Nothing, I just feel the changes of advancing to the first level, the flow of energies inside me."

    "So, no effects huh? Let''s see when it will make its move."

    A month passed since Farjan entered the first level of Spiritual Stage. In the month that passed, he decided to spend half of his days cultivating and the other half working back again in the city.

    Before, only a few people could see him in the vicinity, only his friend that he asked to sell his vegetables and some others. But now that he was back, many people started to give him a some work like what he always did before.

    Only then, he understood more about cultivation. When someone becomes a cultivator, great changes will happen. It gave them more strength far above the norm and their vitality would also increase greatly. Now, even if Farjan was constantly working, no weariness could be seen on his face. Instead, he was more active than before, to the point where he could do some things simultaneously and lift heavier things using only his arm.

    At first, Farjan was shocked by this discovery but after some thought, he realizes that it was normal. The abnormal thing would be when he becomes a cultivator but nothing extraordinary happens. That would bring up the big question, ''Did I really become a cultivator?''

    When the people in the city saw the changes in Farjan, their jaws dropped from the shock. This teenager before was normal in many aspects but now, from what they saw, a lot of changes happened when he disappeared for how many times.The townsfolk couldn''t believe it and many exaggerated stories are made.

    Half a month has passed and an astounding thing has happened in the Dowter clan that left all of its members stupefied.

    Bathar, a part of the Dowter clan, the son of the second elder, was a miner who discovered a rich mining location in the land owned by the clan.

    The mining site was rich in gold, silver and many other valuable stones and materials. There were some diamonds too. The Dowter clan quickly dispatched people to the site to help in mining.

    The whole clan became lively and active. Many men were mobilized. Soon enough, after many days passed, the overall wealth of the clan increased by tenfold! They could now be considered a middle-class clan.

    The clan members rejoiced because of the good fortune they have. However, nothing could be permanently hidden in this world. Even if the Dowter clan tried their best to conceal the matter, because they know that if anyone notices this, a huge setback will absolutely happen Unluckily, the thing that they feared the most transpired.

    A young master from the Sofori clan noticed the matter. The Sofori clan was a high-class clan, or should we say the highest-class clan within the Bigfield City. Why? Because the City Lord who ruled this city is a member of this Sofori clan.

    Soon enough, this particular young master, known as Michael Sofori sent some subordinates to the clan.

    They reached the clan and had a ''conversation''.

    "We know the matter about the mine of your clan, and young master Michael sent us here to discuss with you properly to hand-over the mining site to the City Lord." One of Michael''s subordinates said to Farjan''s grandfather.

    "Why would we hand this over to you? What right do you have to get OUR mining site INSIDE our territory?" The clan leader said indignantly.

    "So, this trifling low-class clan dared to offend the Sofori clan huh?!" The man said mockingly. Although the Dowter clan now could be considered a middle-class clan, they still haven''t laid foundation yet. "We will return and let''s see where this courage of yours takes you." With that, he and the other subordinates turned back and headed to their master to report the incident.

 Chapter 5: The Setback

    During that time, Farjan was working in the city and so, he remained clueless about what had happened in his clan.

    Farjan was eating with Holdbert. They saw each other while Farjan was heading back home. Holdbert invited him to eat. At first, Farjan tried to refuse, but after some consideration, he accepted.

    Inside the cafeteria at the market.

    "Hey, Farjan, tell me, what happened to you this past month?" Holdbert said curiously.

    "Nyawthiing just somwe lit-hel rest." Farjan was busy eating, so when he answered, Holdbert can vaguely understand what Farjan he was saying.

    "No, I mean, what did you do? Why do you have that kind of strength? You know, you''re one of the hot topics here in the city."

    "Is that so? Um..."Farjan didn''t know what to say, he couldn''t reveal his secret to others easily,"I''ll tell you in the future, now is not the time."

    ''Looks like I overdid it. I must act normal again. Using my true strength here was a bit suspicious.''

    "Why didn''t you help in the mining of your clan? Why work here in the city? You can earn more in mining, right?

    "I have unfinished work here in the city, but when I''m off, I help them in mining."

    They ate and talked about their experiences. Their laughter rang out through the little cafeteria where they ate and many people turned to look at their direction.

    Later, they finished eating. After they bid each other a farewell, they headed back home.

    At the same time at the Sofori clan''s territory, in a big mansion where the young master resided, a man with a majestic air stood in front of the mansion. He was 180 centimeters tall, his skin was fair white like a woman''s and from his looks, you could tell that he was a haughty person. In front of him, a dozen men were kneeling. A particular man was at the front of these men.

    "Greetings young master Michael!" They said in unison.

    Michael nodded and asked, " What happened in your mission, Samir?"He looked at the man who was at the frontmost of the group.

    "The Dowter clan resisted and refused to give the mining site to your majesty," Samir replied.

    "Demonstrate them and let them know the ''laws''. Prepare the imperial guards of our clan."

    "As you wish." Samir said while he grinned. Then, the men turned and left.

    On the other hand...

    Farjan reached their house. He quickly saw the gloomy face of his mother.

    His mother told him about the matter of the Sofori clan oppressing them because of the mining site.

    "I''m sure they will send guards by the time they go back and use brute force to get what they wanted." His mother said.

    "That damned Sofori clan. I''m sure they will send many guards that can handle us."

    ''I must get stronger, although I can take some of them. Considering the Sofori clan, they have many forces.''

    He turned and walked towards the door when suddenly, he heard his mother''s voice, " Where are you going?"

    "I''ll just prepare to harvest mom." With that, he continued walking until he finally left the house.If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

    "I will prepare to harvest lives if they dared!" He said in his heart. He was kind towards other people, but not to those who posed threats, especially to the people close to him. He headed to Mt. Tri-mus to consult his master.

    In Tromer''s house...

    "Master, can you teach me how to advance to the second level of Spiritual Stage? I need to get stronger!"

    "Just cultivate, and you will reach that level eventually."

    "Please master, I beg you, I will do everything you want."

    "No."

    "Please..."

    "I said no! Do you not understand?"

    Farjan was still persistent, that was his attitude. If he decided to do things, he would do it. He''s very stubborn and will never give up.

    Tromer knew Farjan''s attitude. After seeing that Farjan was really determined...

    "Okay, I will give this to you, but I don''t know the side effects, especially for you who experienced something not normal."

    "It''s fine, as long as it can help me to advance."

    Tromer took out a light yellow potion. "This is a potion for cultivators in the Spiritual Stage. As an apprentice alchemist, I can concoct this through some efforts. Consume this and cultivate for ten days."

    "Thank you, master. I will surely repay you in the future."Farjan immediately took the potion from Tromer''s hands and left.

    Inside Farjan''s family house, in a dark wooden room, Farjan could be seen sitting cross-legged, cultivating. After a moment he produced a light-yellow colored potion, and without hesitation, he consumed it.

    After Farjan consumed the potion, he immediately felt something that ran through his spirit. The spirit became the passageways of anything related to cultivation. It was called ''spirit passageways''. What he felt was like something was burning inside of him. The heat being radiated caused his face to become unsightly.

    "Urgh... It''s hot! What kind of potion is this?"This was the first time Farjan consumed a potion and it turned out to be like this. Because of his lack of experience, he was not prepared for something like this. Besides, based on what he read in the books, most of the potions can make you feel refreshed.

    Still, Farjan endured the suffering just to become stronger. He spent most of his days like this. Although he finished consuming the potion, whenever he sat cross-legged and started to cultivate, the feeling of burning within him always returned.

    Now was the seventh day of Farjan''s cultivation. He already felt seventy percent of the changes made to his body and cultivation aspect.

    He continued to do this routine every day until three more days have passed... However, something that he never expected happened...

    The last day of Farjan''s cultivation period. He had advanced to the second level of Spiritual Stage. However, it cost him something unusual. Instead of feeling the strengthening, what he felt was the weakening of his body.

    Farjan''s cultivation base was at the second level, but his body was still at the first level. A cultivator must have their cultivation base at the same level as their body. Having your body in a state where it was stronger than your cultivation was a good thing, but having your body weaker than your cultivation base was not beneficial, it''s like having a glass of water containing water equivalent to two glasses.

    Because of this phenomenon, Farjan''s body was gradually weakened. Knowing his state, he immediately went to his master.

    At the moment, Farjan''s body was not that weak. But, gradually, it will. His body was only weakened by ten percent, so he was still able to do some things like walking up to Mt. Tri-mus to ask his master about the unusual thing that happened in his cultivation and what he should do.

    Inside Tromer''s house...

    "That''s what I was saying before, but you did not listen!" Said Tromer with in high pitched voice.

    When Farjan reached Tromer''s house, he immediately told his master about the unusual thing that happened after he advanced to second level caused by consuming the potion and cultivating for ten days.

    "What should I do? They will come back soon."

    "What can you do? Nothing. You can do nothing. If you tried to use your powers, it would cost a great damage to your body."

    Instead of a good result that could help Farjan in his problem, what appeared was this unlucky state that he was in.

    Farjan ceased to talk for a moment and thought again.

    "For now, the only thing that you can do is to rest, it will slow down the process of weakening of your body. Don''t worry, it is not a permanent thing, you will recover soon."

    When Farjan heard this revelation, a hint of joy could be seen on his face. His previously gloomy face changed into a rejoicing one. "When?" He excitedly asked.

    "After a year and a half," Tromer said coolly.

    Farjan''s face became unsightly again after he heard this. His previously joyful face turned back to become gloomy again.

    Farjan had nothing to say. His master didn''t have a solution for him, so what can a beginner in cultivation probably do? His only way was to rest and preserve his body. Accept the truth and wait for a year and a half.

    Farjan did not regret his decision before, to gain more strength even if the result of it was this situation of hopelessness. The thing that he regretted the most was that he could not help the people close to him. He could not endure the fact that he was able, but he had done nothing.

    After discussing the matter with his master, Farjan turned back heading to his house.

 Chapter 6: Badass Tromer

    Four more days have passed since then. In that time, what Farjan only did was to rest in his own room. This made his mother worried. She took care of him like when he was a child. Clearly, even if Farjan wasn''t a child anymore, she still treated him like one and for her, he would be forever the child that she always took care of.

    The next day...

    The day that the Dowter clan feared of had arrived. The young master of the Sofori clan, Michael, personally came and brought over an army of imperial guards, roughly two hundred of them. Surely, he would use this amount of fully equipped guards to scare the ordinary citizens of the Dowter clan.

    All the Dowter clan members gathered outside. There were normal members, the elders, and the clan leader.

    "What business do you have here?" The clan leader asked.

    Although the clan leader knew the reason why the guards were here, he still asked them just to put up some face for his clan. He cannot beg to them and he would never beg to them. Why would he beg for something his clan owned? It was ridiculous! Only shameless and pitiful people do that.

    "Idiot! You know the answer, yet you still asked our young master! You can''t even touch his fingers, why do you dare to speak?" Samir asked furiously as his finger was pointed on the elder. But then, later, the left side of his lips curled up into a smile.

    "Wait! You are a mere subordinate of this young lad! Yet you dared to be arrogant, you can''t even compare to me! People like you should stop talking. You only use your mouth for your own benefits."The third elder said.

    Clearly, this Samir was taking the chance to get Michael''s approval. When he heard the third elder''s reply, his face became unsightly and out of anger, he spoke again,

    "Hey! I think you have a sharp tongue there. Who do you think is arrogant!? YOU are the arrogant one! You are from a low-class clan and yet you still have the courage to say those things! Are you retard-..."

    "Stop! You''re talking too much Samir! You made my ears bleed."Michael finally spoke.

    Samir ceased to talk after hearing this. He just stood there unmoving, gritting his teeth and glaring furiously at the third elder. He was like a child that saw the man who stole his favorite toy. He couldn''t fight back at the man, so he just glared at him.

    "We are here to PROPERLY get the mining site you have there. Don''t worry, we will not get the things you already got, just the mining site." Michael said. He emphasized the word ''properly'' as if to say that they posed no harm.The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

    "Properly huh? With that army of fully equipped Imperial guards? Tell me, how will you respond if a person told you that he would get your mining site ''PROPERLY'' with an army like what you have there?"The clan leader replied coolly.

    Michael looked toward his army of Imperial guards, then turned back again and said, "These? Uhm... they are my personal bodyguards, I think?"He replied.

    The fourth elder suddenly stepped forward and said, "Why do you have an ARMY of bodyguards? Do you think we are the kind of people who just kill whenever we want? Or are you a scaredy little boy who needs protection? Or it is to scare us? Oops! I think I''ve gone too far. Sorry."

    "You!" Michael was now insulted to the extreme. In his life only a few people dared to do that, since only people with the same status as him can do so. But now, a mediocre had done it. He was so angry that blue veins popped on his forehead.

    "Get the mining site and demolish all their houses, if anyone resists, you know what to do." Michael commanded the army.

    The elders and the clan leader all knitted their brows. The young man in front of them was so egoistic, that he could not control himself over some insults. He was really immature.

    "Why demolish our houses? Are you insane?"The third elder said.

    Michael paid him no heed. He turned and walked back towards his luxurious carriage, and there, he sat and waited.

    The Imperial guards army started to seize the mining site. Some clan members dared to fight back but they only ended up having bad results. After they saw the incidents, nobody dared to make the same wrong decisions. The leader and the elders were left there standing as they watched their houses being destroyed.

    In one of the houses in the Dowter clan, Farjan''s family house.

    Farjan was sleeping when he heard the noise of the houses being destroyed. He slowly stood up. He was still in a weakened state. In spite of this,he walked until he was in front of the door, then he slowly opened it. When the door finally opened completely, he saw the pitiful state of his clan. Mothers and children were crying, some were begging, most houses were destroyed, and some were burning or burnt. He was not able to tell what he was feeling; anger, indignation, infuriation, and wrath, all of these emotions were building up inside of him.

    As Farjan looked to at his side, fifteen meters away, he saw a woman kneeling in front of an imperial guard. She was begging for something, but the guard pays her no heed. The woman was persistent, and when the guard started to walk past her, she grabbed his foot and begged again. The guard became irritated so he kicked the woman off.

    Farjan knew this woman; it was his mother after all. Seeing what happened, he immediately rotated his cultivation base and made his hand his hand do a gripping motion. Suddenly, the guard who kicked his mother had his head exploded. Chunks of meat and brain were scattered. Luckily, the guard was now far from his mother. If not, then his mother would be full of blood.

    Many people saw what happened and a blank look could now seen on their faces.

    After doing that, Farjan was now on the verge of collapse. His vision became blurred, after a few seconds, he would have fallen, but a middle-aged man catched him and said,"I told you to just rest, but you still pushed yourself." It was his master, Tromer."You may now rest for a bit. Let me handle this matter."

    Tromer gave Farjan a blue potion and said,"Consume this, it will help you recover from this weakening body." It was a potion he especially concocted for Farjan''s condition. Then, he asked Farjan who was now collapsing, "Do you have a request?"Their gazes met and from that, Tromer got his answer. "Copy."

    Tromer did some stretching for a minute then he said while grinning, "BRING IT ON!"

 Chapter 7: A Boring Fight

    "Bring it on!" Tromer said with a smile. His eyes flashed, and then he looked somewhere. He saw Imperial guards, five or so of them, destroying one of the houses. The house is made from wood, just like almost all of the houses here in the Dowter clan''s territory. And since they were made from wooden materials, demolishing them would only make you drop some sweat, but it will not make you weary.

    These guards were doing their job happily, even if the family who owned the house were sorrowful behind their back. Seeing their house being destroyed by these guards, who were having a good time doing it, causes deep anger to bloom within their hearts. However, at the moment, there was nothing they can do. Fighting back will only make them suffer more.

    "Happy huh?" Tromer knitted his brows and slowly walked towards the Imperial guards. "Hey! I think you should stop doing that."

    The guards stopped for a moment and said "Why do we need to stop? Why do you think you have the authority to command us?"

    "Um... Why do you need to stop? Because I said that you should stop. That''s all!"

    "Hahahaha!"

    "What kind of joke is this? Hahahaha!"

    "You''re too arrogant! What? Did we hear it wrong? Hahahaha!"

    Endless laughter rang out after the guards had heard what Tromer said. Clearly, they were idiots, but you cannot really blame them. Looking at a man who only had a one right arm, being brave and bold enough to say those things was funny enough to make them laugh relentlessly.

    "I said you should stop! Are you deaf? Do you clean your ears regularly?" Tromer replied, looking towards the guards without even a hint of fear.

    "This guy is an idiot and didn''t use his brain. I guess I should teach him a lesson or few to help him realize things." One of the guards replied. He wore plain steel armor; he was a middle-aged man and was muscular.

    He clenched his fis,t initiating a punch towards Tromer. Tromer didn''t even move. Clearly, these Imperial guards were just ants or more likely, specks of dust.

    "Oh! Bro-fist!" Tromer punched back against the guard. His punch was not that strong, it was only a bro-fist after all.

    When the two fists collided with each other, cracking sounds could be heard from the guard''s arm. His bones were broken into pieces. The guard felt a wave of great pain wash over him. He screamed miserably.In all of his experiences, this was the most pained scream he ever made.

    The feeling was like this being in a nightmare. If even low leveled cultivators cannot stand up after this ''bro-fist'', how much more a mere mortal? Tromer may not be in his original realm of cultivation but was still at the Profound Stage.

    The other Imperial guards were shocked from the scene. They didn''t even put this man in their eyes yet, he could battle with them effortlessly using his one and only arm. The person who was just dust in their perception suddenly became a boulder in just a few moments.

    After realizing these things, the other guards took the situation in a very different manner. They agreed to fight simultaneously without even thinking if it was necessary or not.

    Of course, what happened next is obvious. The Imperial guards were no match for Tromer. Even if they fight simultaneously, the only result could be a bloody ending. After this, Tromer was not satisfied, and he decided to find other Imperial guards to fight.This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work.

    Seeing the person they saved protect them made the clan members think that what they''ve done for him in the past was not in vain. Different feelings rose up in their hearts, happiness, hope, rejoicing, and surprise, as well as fear for the clan members who opposed the treatment of Tromer. They thought that he might have known about their past actions and decide to take revenge. This did not only apply to the ordinary clan members! The clan leader and the elders were also surprised by this sudden revelation of power by Tromer, especially the third and fourth elder who were firmly opposing the decision to help him.

    At a distance, Tromer was fighting the Imperial guards of the Sofori clan. Many guards were now fighting simultaneously against him. As of now, the number of the army had already decreased by over one-fourth of its original size.

    And Tromer was not yet finished!

    He continued to battle in many different locations. Wherever he went, the Imperial guards cried in pain or died miserably with dismantled body parts and scattered blood.

    Fighting these Imperial guards was not as exciting as what it must seem to be for Tromer. Actually, he didn''t even move much. He only did some minor movements like jabs, kicks, slaps, dodges and... yawns.

    It was too boring that Tromer had more time to yawn than to fight back. He will dodge and punch, then, he will yawn. He performed many different combinations of movements but still, there will always be a yawn after those.

    Seeing this scene playing out in front of them enraged the Imperial guards. Their veins were popping out of their foreheads because of their humiliation and embarrassment.

    What could possibly compare to this humiliation? They all fought together, simultaneously against a single person who only had his right arm, and take note; he was bored and they were losing! If anyone saw them, they will surely become a laughingstock.

    More blood was spurting everywhere. Sounds of cracking bones, miserable screams and curses were coming from the Imperial guards as they continuously fought back against the bored Tromer.

    "Attack! Do not let him escape!"Said furiously by one of the Imperial guards.

    "Escape? Me? Why do you think that I would escape? I would never do that!" Tromer said loudly. Suddenly, he remembered the time when he escaped from his fight against Darnce. An embarrassed look could now be seen in his expression as he remembered what he had said a few seconds before. "I will never do that! Against you." He added, just to clear his conscience.

    He sighed,"I think I should stop talking to these morons." With that, he ceased all of his babblings, including his sarcasm.

    He grabbed a guard then threw him towards the ground. After that, he punched several guards and kicked two more guards. Although the guards had armor, it didn''t even help them to resist the attack, with a single punch or a kick, their armor disintegrated and crumbled.

    At the same time, Michael was very relaxed, sitting inside the carriage. He didn''t know what was happening outside. He heard the noises, like the screams and battle shouts, but he thought that those came from the Dowter clan members who had the courage to resist.

    "Looks like there are many brave people here in this clan." Michael said after he had heard a loud shout of a curse. "Stop killing us! You''re a damned son of a b*itch."

    Michael paid no more heed to them. He was confident that the army he got could handle this trifling clan.

    But then, you can''t blame Michael for being as confident as this, since he brought roughly two hundred Imperial guards for this. However, he didn''t know that there would be a monster who can single-handedly fight back and win against his army.

    On the other hand... Tromer was fighting back against the army. Or should we say that he was slaughtering them. You cannot even call it a fight!

    By now, there were only seventy Imperial guards left, all of them having an expression of fear.

    Farjan, who had collapsed, was now showing signs of awakening. The potion that Tromer had given him had helped a lot in his recovery. His weakening body before was now slowly recovering, but it was not a total recovery. It was just a short period, of course, it''ll take a few more days. Right now, he had gained strength that can help him do some minor things.

    Farjan slowly rose up with the help of his mother, who was waiting patiently for her son to regain consciousness.

    "What happened here?" Farjan asked after he saw countless corpses of fully armed Imperial guards laying there on the ground. His memories were temporarily unstable, so he didn''t have any clue.

    "That Tromer helped us, he fought for us!"

 Chapter 8: Michael is in Despair

    He closed his eyes, and focused his thoughts, after a few seconds he retrieved his memories, it is now stable. He can now remember the things that happened before including the pitiful state of his clan up to the point where his master catch him before he collapsed and exchanged deep looks. He is now certain of what had happened.

    He walked slowly towards the place where the clan leader and the elders are standing with dumbfounded expressions written on their face.

    "Farj my grandson! You''re now okay?! How are you?"his grandfather said happily.

    "I''m alright."

    "I saw what you did before, how did you do that? Is it because you always go to Tromer?"His grandpa said as he remembers the events before with Farjan making a person explode by not even making a direct attack. They knew that Farjan is always on Tromer''s place so, they had a conclusion like that.

    Farjan did not answer the question. But obviously, they are right. Farjan truly got his powers by going to Tromer''s place almost every day.

    When he saw that Farjan is not willing to answer his question, he dropped the matter. He didn''t want his grandson to think much. "It''s okay if you do not answer, do take some rest, that''s the best thing you can do for now."

    Farjan only nodded in reply.

    Concurrently, Tromer is finished ''fighting'' against the Imperial guards of Sofori clan. Only a few have remained alive and they are the ones who flee for their lives. Tromer walked towards the place where Farjan, the clan leader and elders stood.

    The delighted expression could now be seen on Farjan, the clan leader and the elders except for the third and fourth elder who is now afraid, beads of sweat are now flowing all over their faces.

    When Tromer is now standing at their front, he bowed deeply and said to them, "Thank you for helping me, please let me handle this matter. It will be the repayment of my debts."

    "It''s no big deal. Thanks for helping us, compared to the thing that we''ve done to you, the help you did this time is far more greater."The clan leader said.

    "Yeah, that''s right! No need to think much. We treated you ''cause you need it."The third elder said while smiling widely with the fourth elder at his back also doing the same wide smile.

    "Thanks again. By the way, can you follow me?"He bowed again and headed towards a place where an extremely beautiful horse carriage is seen.

    Michael is sitting there inside with an angry face. "Why the hell they are so slow? If I am right, by now, those wooden plebian''s houses are demolished and utterly destroyed. I will check them out."He slowly opened the door of the carriage and suddenly, his expression greatly changes by what he saw. There, at the front of the door of his carriage, a one-armed man with 5 old men and a teenager are standing behind this man.

    Suddenly, the man spoke. "I think they''re slow because they can''t even make a single move, how can they even step?"

    Michael saw the countless Imperial guards that he brought here. All of them are not breathing. The bodies are now emanating stench smell and almost all are soaked with blood.If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.

    "What happened!" He is completely shocked, and his face is now hard to paint.

    "Just some tragedy." The clan leader said coolly.

    "Why!" Michael still couldn''t believe what has happened. He never expected something like this! "How do you do that?!"

    "No need to ask. It''s because you think highly of yourself that you dared to step on ants that had the heavens backing them."Tromer said.

    "No! This isn''t right!"

    "Go, tell that to your guardian angel," Tromer said. He punched this pompous young master away restraining his strength, he doesn''t want him to die easily.

    Michael was propelled back. He hit the carriage, but he doesn''t stop there, he made a huge hole in the carriage as he is continuously propelled back away. He only stopped when he reached ten meters away from his original position.

    Michael can''t handle the restrained strength and now he can''t even stand back up again. He spits a mouthful of blood and now he realizes what happened to the Imperial guards and the reason they lose.

    "I apologize! Please forgive me! I will do everything you want! Please, Sir..."He doesn''t any choices to be made and the only thing he can do is to hope that they will forgive him.

    "You will do everything I want?"

    "Yes, Sir!"

    "Then go die!" The fourth elder suddenly said.

    Hearing this, Michael is now hopeless, and the feeling of despair is running through all his veins. "Please sir, I will do everything you want!" he said nervously, he still pleads for his life.

    "Okay, You will do everything?

    "Yes! Yes!"Michael said joyfully.

    "Bring us to the Sofori clan''s headquarters."

    "Okay, sir!" Michael doesn''t think things. The only thing that he wants, is his one and only life. He will do everything just to survive.

    The clan leader and the elders had blank expressions on their faces. A huge question is running down through their minds as to why Tromer wants to go in the Sofori clan?!

    "Why would you go in the Sofori clan?"

    "I''m done warming-up here, it''s time to do get some sweat," Tromer said without a hint of fear or hesitation.

    "What?!" The elders said in unison.

    "I will finish what I''ve started!"

    "Hey! What do you mean by getting some sweat?"Michael said worriedly. He only knew that he would be escorting Tromer to his clan because Tromer will make some conversations with the Sofori clan.

    "I''m done stretching here, so I''m gon''na start some exercises, problem?" Tromer said coolly.

    Michael didn''t expect something like this. He is now confused as to what will he do. Would he escort this killing-machine to their clan and let him do some ''exercises''? Or accept the fact that his life will end here if he did not do what Tromer wishes.

    "What are you waiting?! Let''s go now!" He looks towards the clan leader, elders, and Farjan, then asked, "Want to go with me?"

    "Sure, but we may become a problem if we''re already there."

    "Don''t mind that, In my protection, they cannot touch even the split ends of your hairs."

    "Okay, we''ll go with you." The clan leader said with nods coming from the elders.They started to move. But, as they are slowly walking, a sudden voice could be heard when they moved 2 meters away from their position before.

    "Wait!" Michael shouted loudly. "Please don''t involve my branch of the family in the clan." He begs to Tromer.

    He knows that no matter what, this monster will still pursue his clan, so, he only pleads for his family branch. Besides, he doesn''t have deep feelings for his clan, and he only enjoys the feeling of being a young master using the clan''s status, he can do everything he wants like mobilizing an army of Imperial guards, if it''s possible and reasonable, he can do whatever he likes.

    Of course, this expedition for seizing the mining site of the Dowter clan is supported by the Sofori clan''s elders and the City Lord. They also want it, so they approved in bringing over two-hundred guards. How is it reasonable for a young master to bring their army of Imperial guards which represents the one-fourth of their total army''s size easily? Obviously, There''s a reason behind it!

    Tromer knew that this is the case, so he insisted on going to the Sofori clan to teach those bastards a lesson.

    He just looks deeply at Michael without answering."Don''t let me wait." He said impatiently.

    Michael had nothing to do now. He just gritted his teeth and laughed bitterly for his misfortune. He reminded himself of the things he had done up to this point of despair.

    "Urgh! What have I done?!"He murmured to himself.

 Chapter 9: Whos the Real Demon Between Us?

    Farjan is standing next to his grandpa, thinking the things being played out. He couldn''t help but rejoice in his heart. He felt proud because he had a master that is amazing as this. He wanted to tell the world that he is the disciple of this amazing man, but he just kept those things inside his heart.

    He stares at his master with glittering eyes. Suddenly his master looks at him and their gazes met. "Why are you staring at me like that? You are amazed by me?"

    "Of course not!" Farjan replied with a bashful face.

    They started to move out. The elders including the clan leader are inside Michael''s carriage. Farjan, Tromer, and Michael are riding their own respective horses.

    Michael is the one who leads the way. The Sofori clan''s headquarters is slightly far from the Dowter clan''s territory. The Sofori clan is a huge clan, and they are the ones who dominate the entire Bigfield City, so, any person who is not an idiot will consider that this City is their whole territory.

    As they move towards the Sofori clan''s Headquarters. Michael had an unsightly face. He is confused if he would be regretful or grateful of the things happening.

    Thirty minutes later, they arrived in front of a tall stoned-wall with a huge half-ellipse hole as an entrance. There is a pair of three Imperial guards guarding it on both sides. They are lined-up straightly, and you could tell that they are different to those Imperial guards army that Michael brought. These men have a shiny-metallic armor with glamorous designs and this is far better than others on the Imperial guards in terms of looks and quality.

    They all took off from their carriage and as for Tromer, after he dismounted from his horse, he just walked casually towards the huge entrance. The guards immediately stopped him using the long spears they equipped.

    "Halt!" A deep voice is suddenly heard. "State your purpose in coming here." An Imperial guard said.

    Tromer looked at Michael deeply. He shuddered when he saw that look. Michael immediately noticed the look and understands what it means.

    "Do you not know me?! I''m Michael Sofori! The grandson of an elder here! Let us pass, call the elders and bring them to us immediately. When they ask, just say that this is the most important occurrence for our clan."He suddenly stepped forward and said those words to the guards. He wants to call the elders so that they can discuss and let this matter be dropped, if ever.

    "Pardon me, Young master Michael." The guard said while bowing his head.

    Of course, Tromer noticed this and understands what this pompous young master wants, but he just let him do what he wants. It''s fine for him to have some discussion with the elders and say under circumstances that they must surrender everything to him, it will do his work easier. If they refused? Then, they''re doomed. That''s it!

    The guards let them pass. They entered the huge entrance, and Michael led them to his own mansion.

    He quickly finds his parents and told them that they must submit to Tromer at all cost. At first, there is a conflict between his parents and Tromer. They commanded some guards to attack him, but they failed. Now, they really knew the reason why their son''s expedition failed. As Tromer proved to them that he can dominate them and the whole clan, eventually they submitted themselves.The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

    They quickly gathered all of their family branches and told them that they must never provoke the Dowter clan and this man. The people had blank look at first, but considering that this is said by the family branch head, they followed.

    This branch had an elder in the whole Sofori clan. Michael is that Elder''s grandson so they have quite a reputation. But the elder is busy on the matter of the whole clan, so, his father became the representative of the family in his father instead.

    After fifteen more minutes, the elders arrived. With some guards at their back.

    "Michael! What absurdity is this? What is that the most important thing you said?"An old man wearing a white robe said angrily.

    "Wait! Let me explain."He rapidly replied. With that, he immediately explained things to them, especially the most important details.

    "What did you say?" The elder said a bit shocked. "This man killed all of our guards?" He looks at Tromer from head to toe as if to measure him up. "That''s ridiculous! I think you''re out of your mind kid."He said to Michael.

    "That''s true! My father can bear witness to that!"

    His father immediately said, "That''s true, in truth he just makes some of my men fall without a sweat."

    "Okay, let''s say that''s true. Why is this man here?"

    "For some exercises, I think?" Tromer replied without a hint of fear.

    "Exercises you say?! You''re quite arrogant, huh?! Let''s see if you can last long having that attitude. Elite Imperial guards!"He shouted.

    Then, numerous heavy footsteps could now be heard heading towards their location. After a minute, heavily armored men equipped with high-quality weapons are revealed. Surprisingly, their numbers are intimidating. This ''Elites'' are roughly three-hundred in numbers.

    Tromer just looked at them with a sneer and hints of disdain. Although he is a cultivator and these men are mere mortals, it can be said that he is bullying the weak, but what can he do? This is the Mortal World, the world consisting mortals! You cannot blame him for intercepting with worldly matters.

    "Attack him! Let him know that being arrogant in front of us is a huge sin!"Furiously said by the man in the white robe.

    The guards started to move as what the elder said. They all attacked at the same time.

    Tromer is not moved by this, but still, he let himself be active, he wants to get some sweat. He moves unlike before; he is now a bit active. Instead of waiting to be attacked, he is the one who initiates an attack.

    Tromer is now back from being a killing-machine as he slaughters these Sofori clan''s elite guards. Numerous miserable shrieks are heard as the guards started to decrease in number.

    The elders of the Sofori clan started to frown. They didn''t imagine that he would be this strong. They believe that no mortal could do this that''s why they speculated until they come to a conclusion that, Tromer is, "He''s possessed by a devil! Quick, call the priests at the cathedral!"One of the elders said to a guard beside them.

    The Elite Imperial guard immediately followed. He quickly headed towards the cathedral. After a few minutes, the guard arrived at the cathedral and told them the matter of Tromer being possessed by a devil that needs to be exorcized.

    "We''ll go there immediately. We''ll just prepare the tools we needed."A priest said.

    At this time, almost half of the Imperial guards are lying there on the ground. The countless corpse, scattered blood, and some body parts are being showcased at the front of the onlookers. Tromer is continuous in fighting these Elite Imperial guards when suddenly, he heard a sudden loud voice..."Stop!"

    Surprisingly, five people appeared at the scene, The one on the front most is wearing white clothes different from other four who wears violet colored clothes. This white-clothed man is the Grand Priest of the Cathedral. "You demon! I''m commanding you, begone!"

    Tromer brows furrowed, These old men are commanding him to get out? It''s ridiculous! "What? Me? Begone? what rights do you have to say those words? Are you stupid?"

    "You''re a devil, and we must exorcise you in the name of almighty Galvan! Demon spirit gets out of that man!"The Grand priest said indignantly. Galvan is the ''god'' they serve and the being that blesses them.

    The priests started to mention incomprehensible incantations. Many rays of different lights are starting to be emitted. Tromer had a questioned look on his face, why? Most of the energy particles surrounding the priests are... Demonic energies!

    "Who''s the demon between us?" He sarcastically said. Clearly, this Galvan, who they call, is a demon.

 Chapter 10: City Lord to the Rescue

    These priests are only borrowing their power from a demon. But, for Tromer, this degree of power is not a problem. It is only equal to the power of a second-level cultivator. It is supernatural for mortals but not for Tromer.

    The demonic energies coming from the priests are directed to the Grand Priest. He suddenly extends his arms with palms widely opened then, a sudden burst of demonic energies is used to attack Tromer.

    Tromer got hit by the attack. Ashes and dust are now surrounding him caused by the attack earlier. Because of that Tromer is not seen through the eyes of these old priests. They rejoiced as they thought that Tromer perished.

    But, the next scene shocked them. Tromer got out of the smoke of dust, undamaged. Not even his clothes are destroyed.

    "Are you done?" He said lacking enthusiasm. "It''s my time now!

    All of the priests'' jaws dropped. They have done the most powerful technique they have, but, it''s useless.

    Not just priests, it also includes the elders of the Sofori clan. They now have gloomy faces and stunned expressions. Because of that, they commanded another wave of an army of Imperial guards that''s left on them. They are using all their efforts for this critical juncture.

    But we all know that whatever happens, and whatever methods the Sofori clan will use, it is still to no avail. Their efforts are all in vain.

    Another wave of slaughtering is done by Farjan''s master. "Hey old men of the Sofori clan, my sweats are now building up, I only need some more exercises and it will flow eventually."

    The elders are now furious because of this taunting.But they had no more actions that can be done against the killing machine in the front of them. Like Michael, they are now regretful of what they had done. Until suddenly, their hopes arise as they heard a familiar voice.

    "You need more? I can make you sweat. I will also ensure that this will be your last exercise in your whole life."The man said. He''s a man with the age around 40-50 years old. He has a well-built body full of armors that had an elegant golden design. Behind him, you will see countless men full of armor. The armor of these men is different from the armors of the Sofori clan''s guards; it is metallic and decorated and with shiny silver linings. They have a badge at their chests and at the cape that they wore. It is the badge that symbolizes the Bigfield City.

    This well-built man is the City Lord, Zevan Sofori. Beside him, the countless army are the Bigfield City''s Royal Knights. These Royal Knights are different from the Imperial guards. They are honed for wars and experienced in many different deadly situations that can probably happen. Compared to the Imperial Guards, these Royal Knights are on a different level in terms of strength. The Imperial guards are just guards that secures the protection of a clan, especially for those high-class clans, on the other hand, Royal Knights are securing a whole city.

    The Dowter clan''s leader and the elders are now alarmed. They knew the strength of these Royal Knights and how incalculable their numbers were. They have confidence that Tromer can handle those Imperial guards but talking about these Royal Knights, it''s on a different level. Although they are also numerous, if compared to Bigfield City''s Royal Knights, they are now a bit hesitant.

    "Can Tromer do handle these countless and stronger Royal Knights?" The Dowter clan''s clan leader said.

    "I don''t know." the first elder said. The first elder is silent until this time along with the second elder. They didn''t talk even a bit. But now, in this case, the first elder is slightly skeptical. The second elder is still not saying anything.Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.

    At the same time, The Sofori clan''s elders are now rejoicing. Earlier, they feel complete despair that surrendering is their only choice, but when the City Lord arrives, their faces instantly changes into a delightful expression.

    Zevan Sofori, the City Lord, is not an elder or anything into his clan other than a member, the son of an elder like Michael. He''s not fond of being a mere young master so; he decided to join into politics. Now, he has a higher position than them ''cause he holds the whole city. Their clan leader is currently out of town in a meeting with other clans outside the Laguna province where the Bigfield City is located. He''s there for business and other agendas that can benefit his clan.

    Two hours ago...

    Zevan is in the City Lord''s Office dealing with the problems of the city.

    Inside a room with a long wooden table and seven chairs, three on each side and one in the front. This is the conference of the City Lord with his trusted subordinates.

    "Did you finish collecting the taxes in the market?" He said to a man in the middle of the right side of the table.

    "Yes my lord, I already collected them including the taxes of clans." The man said. He''s the person in charge of the treasury and funds.

    "Good, give me a written report for that," Zevan said and asked again another person who is near him sitting on the right side of the table. "How''s the equipment for the Royal Knights coming from Petroit City?"

    "The equipment and weapons were already delivered to us yesterday before night falls. They also give us some artilleries for free as thanks for our continuous transaction with them."

    "That''s nice, tell them that we will continue our business with them. Also, invite them here and let them see our city."

    "Yes, my lord." Replied the man who is in charge of the army and defense."

    They continued to discuss the matters of the city. Suddenly, the door opened and a Royal Knight appeared. He quickly knelt down and said, " An emergency report. A Royal Knight has reported that the Sofori clan''s Headquarters is under attack."

    Zevan''s eyes widened as he heard those unexpected reports. "Wait, am I hearing this wrong? My clan is under attack?"

    "Yes, your highness."

    "Why would anybody attack my clan? Do they know me? Who the hell dares to do that? Tell me! Whatever organization is that I will destroy them!"Zevan said indignantly.

    "There''s no information about the attacker but the Royal Knight who reported this tells that their number is not many."

    "Not many? How can they attack my clan? We have almost a thousand Imperial Knights."

    The Royal Knight who is currently kneeling is silent. He didn''t know what to say because he himself is not sure what had happened.

    After seeing the Royal Knight being silent, Zevan ceased talking, because he knows that this knight in front of him has no knowledge about the matter and he only tells the things he heard from another knight.

    "You..." He pointed the man who is in charge of the army and defense, "Quick, gather an army of Royal Knights and let them use the weaponry we got from Petroit City. We will use this time to test those weapons we got."

    "Yes my lord." He replied full of respect. After that, he stood and bowed to Zevan then left to do the things Zevan commanded him.

    The man quickly gathered an army. He ordered some knights to get the new weaponry and to organize those. A few minutes later, there are now countless armored men standing in the open grounds of the City Lord''s office.

    The man in charge of the army and defense is standing on a higher ground as he loudly speaks."The City Lord summoned all of you here to defend the Sofori clan who is under attack now. We got new equipment from other city and our City Lord commanded us to use those."He looks at the man at his side and then, the man quickly understand the meaning of those looks, he started to give out the equipment and weapons with the help of some Royal Knights to the army.

    Fifteen more minutes passed, the weapons are now given out and are equipped by the Royal Knights.They now look more elegant in their battle gear, but you can feel a scary aura coming from them behind those beautiful armors.

    After a minute a well-built man with full battle-gear of armor with elegant golden design arrived, obviously, it''s the City Lord, Zevan. He raised his hand while holding a sword. "This time, somebody dared to attack the Sofori clan broadly. They started a commotion, and the job of Royal Knights is to protect our Bigfield City against those people with evil desires. Be brave heroes and let''s protect our most beloved city."Zevan said passionately with the air of a leader.

    The hearts of Royal Knights quickly burned. Those ''brainwashing'' deeply carves inside of them, especially the word ''heroes''. A man suddenly shouted loudly, "For the City!" It is heard throughout the place and then the other Royal Knights replied in unison, "For the City!"While raising their swords.

    Zevan is pleased by this and he said. "Come, let''s go and punish those damned evildoers that interrupted the peace of our city."

    The army of Royal Knights replied with loud shouts.

 Chapter 11: Compensation

    At the moment, Farjan''s face is a bit unsightly because he knows that his master is not completely recovered from his past injuries. Tromer''s injuries are serious, and it cannot be treated by ordinary means of mortals. Healing methods of mortals and cultivators are different. Cultivators use different techniques with regards to magic and mortals doesn''t do that.

    Also, when someone entered the first level of Spiritual Stage, their bodies are changed. Many aspects of a person are changed by just using and fusing with energies and elements in the surroundings.

    Farjan is a bit worried for his master, but he cannot do something. His master knows what he''s doing so Farjan didn''t pursue the matter.

    Currently, Tromer is now looking at the army of Royal Knights, but instead of being scared he just feels mercy for them. He feels mercy because he clearly knows that, whatever happens, even if these Royal Knights are stronger than those Imperial Guards, they are still mortals. Adding the fact that he is a cultivator in the Profound Stage he doesn''t have to worry about those trivial things.

    Even a cultivator at the 5th level of the Spiritual stage can do battle against hundreds of these Royal Knights, although they may become just a bit exhausted. A 7th level Spiritual Stage cultivator can battle with this army with just using 30 percent of their strength and a 9th level Spiritual Stage cultivator can kill all of these with just using their 15 percent of the power. But this is all by using only their brute force and not any magics and supernatural powers.

    If theses cultivators fight back against these mortals, even if they are on the 3rd level of the Spiritual stage, just let them use their cultivation powers and these men will all be dead soon.

    If that''s the case, Tromer is at the Profound Stage, the highest stage in the Earth Realm. The difference between stages is a huge gap. If the Spiritual Stage cultivators can fight and surely win against these mortal Royal Knight, how much more for Tromer who is at the Profound Stage? Will he just wink, and these men will all explode?

    But, Tromer wants to do exercise and have some sweat, so he only uses a bit of ''brute'' force like simple kicks, simple punches, simple, etc. He doesn''t want to be savage with these mortals ''cause the cultivators didn''t want to do something against them without no apparent reason.

    Tromer suddenly replied to Zevan,"What did you say? This will be my last exercise? You''re right! This will be my last exercise because there will be no more of this, all of you will surrender later."

    "You''re too overbearing! Know your place. You''re just a nobody!"Zevan angrily said.

    "Why do all of them said that I''m arrogant and overbearing? In fact'' they are the arrogant! Anyway, I''ll just teach them good manners."Tromer said in his heart. With that, he shouted, "Let''s go! So that I can go back home and sleep, I will finish this quickly."

    "Attack!" Zevan furiously shouted. The Royal Knights attacked simultaneously.

    Tromer fight back at them. He stomps his feet at the ground, and cracks are now seen. The knights near him instantly fell down. At the same time, more knights are heading towards him.

    Tromer let himself be active at this time. As what he can see, this so called knights are nothing more than ants. Nothing special about them, just their costume is a bit more good-looking compared to Imperial Guards. But, Tromer will just punch them, and their armors will instantly crumble.

    The scene now is a bit more savage than before. More and more corpses are adding to the collection laying there on the ground. More blood is spurting and more miserable screams are loudly heard.This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

    After only a minute, almost half of the original size of the Royal Knights are left behind. The City Lord is now confused. "Is it right that I sacrificed these knights for my clan? As what I can see, we have no chances of winning, and why is that? What''s with this man? Is he insane?"

    The elders are now back from feeling despair. Their emotions are constantly changing as time passes by. They become hopeless a little while ago, then joyful, then hopeless again!

    The battle is unceasing, and Tromer, by the help of restraining his power and being more active at fighting, little by little his sweats is flowing because he''s battling as if he''s fighting humans, though they are humans, still, in his eyes they are only ants.

    "Oh! My sweats are starting to flow."Tromer said with a gleeful expression on his face.

    When the sweat flowed, Tromer feels nothing special, even weariness has no room. A sweat just flowed, that''s it. "Hey there..." He said while looking towards the City Lord,"You said that this would be my last exercise, and I''m afraid you''ll be wrong because my sweat is now pouring down and you have more cannon fodders for me."

    Zevan only gritted his teeth after hearing this taunting. As what was happening, these Royal Knights are easily defeated by a one-armed man. They didn''t even make a scratch or anything to Tromer. Surely, in the eyes of the onlookers, they are all cannon fodders.

    Zevan looked at the dead knights. Not all knights are dead, some are just unconscious after being hit by a punch, kick, or thrown by Tromer while some men can''t move even if they have a conscious mind. After pondering for a moment, many thoughts ran through Zevan''s mind. He thought that, if he let this killing-machine slaughter his Royal Knights, he will not certainly get a good result, he will only let his men fall. If he surrendered, it would greatly affect his dignity; he''s the one who charges forth in this place and brought an army of Royal knights yet, he will be the one who will surrender... To a one-armed man? It''s ridiculous! This will be a huge setback for him if he will do this.

    Now, all that dared to cross swords with Tromer are hopeless and regretful. From Michael to the Sofori clan''s elders up to Zevan Sofori, the City Lord, they are all regretful as their expression greatly change. Their haughty attitude coming from their statuses and influence is now disappearing.

    After a long time of pondering to himself, Zevan made a decision, "You..."At the same time pointing at Tromer with his index finger,"You think you''re making any sense at all in killing and attacking my Sofori clan and Royal Knight?"

    Now, Zevan wants to stop this killing-machine diplomatically. But, he still bears the pride of being a City Lord. He doesn''t want to beg to Tromer just to surrender to him. He just wants to hide his fear by holding his pride and talking to Tromer as if nothing is to worry at all.

    "Hypocrite..." Tromer said in his heart. "Sense? Are you saying I do not have sense? Are you stupid?"

    Zevan frown. He doesn''t understand what Tromer is saying.

    "This clan attacked the Dowter clan, just because of their mining site, they even demolished their houses! Who''s making any sense between us? Please answer me City Lord."

    Zevan had nothing to say. It''s right that the Sofori clan is the first one who caused a commotion. What is happening now is just retaliation. He just gritted his teeth while looking deeply at the one-armed man in front of him who caused all of this disaster.

    "We should stop this now once and for all, I don''t want any useless deaths to be made again."

    The Dowter clan''s leader suddenly stepped forward and said, "The City Lord is right, this must be ended. There''s no benefit in killing people."

    Farjan, who is at the right side of the clan leader, is currently thinking to himself. He wants no more bloodshed but, they are the one who started this disaster.

    When the words of the Dowter clan''s leader reached Tromer''s ears, he couldn''t help but frown. The Sofori clan oppressed them yet; they want to end this matter. In Tromer''s perception that is ridiculous!

    At the same time, Zevan became happy because of the clan leader''s decision. But, seeing Tromer with the unyielding look he just gritted his teeth again and after a few moments, a decision is made in his mind.

    "Don''t you worry, we know that the Sofori clan is the one who started this all? They destroyed their territory and planned to seize the mining site they have which is the source of the clan''s income. Because of all of these, the Sofori clan will compensate for the damage and will even help the Dowter clan."

    Although the deal is not that bad, Tromer still got his unyielding expression. His brows are still curled up, but he still has his calm demeanor. Zevan understands that Tromer didn''t agree to his deal.

    He just asked him,"State what you want."

 Chapter 12: Giving Out Another Mission

    "Give us 10,000 golds for compensation, help in restoring the territory, but there will be a lot of changes. The village must be built as a high-class clan territory..." Tromer is saying, but the Sofori clan''s elders immediately disrupted him.

    "Wait! Do you know what you''re saying? 10,000 golds? That''s equivalent to 3 years budgets of a high-class clan! And also restoring the Dowter clan''s territory into a new and for a high-class clan!? That''s expensive you know?"

    In this world, the currency used in trading and in the market is bronze, silvers, and golds. 20 bronzes is equivalent to 1 silver and 50 silvers are equivalent to 1 gold coin. A single bronze coin can buy a bread, simple cloth, and many other basic needs. A single silver can buy good enough clothes, weapons, commodities, etc. A single gold coin can buy slightly expensive things like luxurious clothes, equipment and much more! Just imagine, a single gold coin is a luxury how much more for 10,000 gold coins for just a mere compensation?

    Then Zevan also let out his concerns, "That''s right, what you wish is a bit overboard. We just demolished the houses so why not rebuild it again into its original state?

    Indeed, what Tromer wishes is overboard. They just demolished most of the houses and killed some clan members, but it''s not too excessive in order for the Sofori clan to do the things he wants.

    "Urgh! All of you are hard to deal with! If you don''t want to end, this just tells me, and I will be the one to end this with my own methods."Tromer is now irritated. Being a cultivator and dealing with just mere mortals are hard. Unlike mortals, cultivators value every time they had at their hands even if they can live up to hundreds or thousands of years, but these mortals who only have below a hundred of years of longevity like to spend their time on useless things.

    You cannot blame these mortals for this attitude of them towards time. This matter is important to them and for Tromer it is not. You cannot tell anyone that they are wrong because everybody has a different perception.

    After hearing Tromer''s words and seeing his irritated demeanor, the Sofori clan''s elders and the City Lord instantly reveals an unsightly expression. Although their clan has a lot of funds still, 10,000 golds is a huge amount adding the restoration expenses, it''s hard to accept it. If they accepted the deal, surely their treasury will be reduced to half of its original size.

    But they knew that this mad one-armed man can make havoc in their clan, so in order to end this matter, the clan elders of the Sofori clan and Zevan made a decision...

    "Okay, It''s a deal. We will compensate and help in the restoration process just to end this."

    But Tromer suddenly said, "Wait!"

    "What? We accept your deal with us! Is there anything wrong?"

    "Don''t worry nothings wrong..."

    "Then, why?"

    "Our deal is just insufficient. You disrupted me earlier when I''m talking, so, I''m unable to say all of my conditions."Tromer said calmly.If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.

    "What?" The Sofori clan''s elders said in unison including the City Lord. They didn''t expect something like this, so now, they are very surprised as their jaws dropped.

    "I know you heard it clearly, my conditions are not laid out all, it still lacked one thing, the plantation near your territory, I want that."

    Tromer will not bother to go and wreck havoc in this place without a plan or a certain purpose, of course, he has an objective in coming here. Why would he spend his time in mortal affairs?

    That plantation, that Tromer is saying, it is a real simple plantation where many kinds of herbs and plants are growing, but it might look simple but not for cultivators especially to those who have knowledge about alchemy. Obviously, this plantation has many medicinal plants growing, and Tromer wants it because it might help in his treatment regarding his curse.

    That''s one of the reasons why he spent time for this lowly mortal affairs.

    Concurrently, Farjan has an inkling why his master does this. When he saw the plantation, he also wants it as it may help in his alchemy practice. Although it might seem that he is still interested in mortal affairs, his point of view of things is slowly changing into the perception of cultivators.

    On the other hand, the Sofori clan elders are confused on what action will they do. They already accepted the tremendous deal of compensating gold and helping in rebuilding. They already give huge amount just for this, it''s a huge setback for them and when their clan leader goes back, surely they will taste his wrath. But unfortunately for them, that''s not all Tromer has one more request, the plantation.

    The Sofori clan has a lot of properties including many plantations, although they can give this plantation, they already give a huge amount to the Dowter clan.

    Zevan is analyzing deeply in his mind. He wants to end this matter quickly, si that there will be no more useless bloodsheds in their side. After his deep pondering, "Give them the plantation. The Sofori clan has many of those, we should end this."He said to the elders of Sofori clan.

    The Sofori clan elders only grinded their teeth, although they will not take orders from only a member of theirs even if he''s the City Lord, yet his decision is correct. That''s the only way.

    Right now, they just accepted that they lost. They shouldn''t have mess with this evil monster. "Okay, the deal is finished, we will do as what we have said and you may take over that plantation." They said with gloomy faces and regret inside their hearts.

    Tromer, smiled widely, his machinations is a success. Farjan and the Dowter clan elders are rejoiceful. "Let''s go back home for now." The Dowter clan leader said."

    "Alright, this matter has ended, we should get back to the office," Zevan said to his few Royal Knights that are left behind as they turned around heading back to where they came from.

    Right now, the Sofori clan elders including Michael and some clan members are left behind. Standing still quietly as the winds drifted at the front of them whipping their clothes.

    -------

    An hour has passed.

    Farjan, Tromer, the clan leader and elders of the Dowter clan, arrived at their territory. The clan members left behind welcomed them with worried faces, but after telling them the deal, they become happy. Now, the karma prevailed.

    After some moments of chatterings, Tromer called his disciple and said, "Rest, for now, don''t do anything heavy. Come back to me after ten days and I have a special mission for you."

    Farjan''s eyes immediately widened after hearing the word ''mission'' not because of excitement but because of fear. The first mission he has ever done for Tromer is to build a house not connected to cultivation in any aspect. Now, he''s suspecting as what mission would he do. "Will I build a house for you again? Or a mansion? Or an office or..." Farjan is still saying something but Tromer slap him.

    "No! Just come back to me after ten days and I will really give you a special mission" with that, Tromer walked away heading to his house at Mt. Tri-mus.

    Farjan just grinded his teeth. This is not an ordinary mission, its special after all. Would he build a huge building for Tromer? "Urgh, I''m not comfortable to this special mission," he said only inside his mind.

 Chapter 13: Ambush

    The morning after the incident between the two clans, the whole city is covered by the news.

    "Did you hear? The low-class Dowter clan attacked the Sofori clan yesterday?"

    "Yes, I heard that! That''s the hottest news in our city today. It''s shocking because the outcome of the battle is not what we think would happen, instead the winner is the low-class clan."

    "Yes, some even said that the Dowter clan brought a demon along them that''s why they win against the powerful Sofori clan."

    "There is a high possibility that what you said is true, logically speaking, a low-class Dowter clan winning over the highest class clan in the Bigfield city is not possible without an outside help."

    "By the way, the Dowter clan is not a low-class clan anymore, these past few days I saw them busy with activities inside their clan, it is said that they discovered a rich mining site in their territory and the Dowter clan is changing to become a middle-class clan because of the wealth provided by the mining site. The Sofori clan coveted it that''s why a battle happens between these two."

    Multiple people are discussing the matter of the two clans. Slowly the stories change and become exaggerated. Some said that the Dowter clan was not a low or middle-class clan anymore instead they are a high-class clan that time and they got the guts to fight. Others said that the said demon with them is really powerful and the Dowter clan is being used as pawns to conquer the world.

    These are just some of the changes and exaggeration of the stories that cover the entire city.

    On the Dowter clan territory, many tents stood as temporary houses for the clan members, because of the demolition that happened just yesterday many people are now homeless. But instead of being gloomy you can see the warm greetings of each clan members, they talk as if nothing really bad happens to their houses and to their life. Almost only a few people are not in a mood because of mourning, they mourn for their family member that died at the hands of the Imperial guards of the Sofori clan that Michael brought.

    Inside a big tent, the clan leader called for a meeting with the elders. Their Ancestral Mansion is also destroyed by the Imperial guards.

    "Our people was recovering from the incident yesterday, most of them are excited instead of being sad because of the compensation of the Sofori clan." an old man said calmly, apparently this is the second elder.

    It is true, because of the promise of repairing their village and making it on par with the territory of the high-class clan, the clan members of the village got excited by this and can''t wait to see their houses rebuilt better than before.

    "Yes, those Sofori clan really suffered a big loss, just by compensating for what they have done they already consumed half of their treasure. Giving us 10,000 gold coins and also restoring our village into a higher class clan one is a big set back for them."The third elder said. Unlike the second elder, this one is much talkative.

    The Sofori clan is not just your ordinary high-class clan, they are the one dominating the whole city, so their wealth is much better than the other high-class clan. If the other high-class clan would change position at them, they will surely get their treasury empty.

    "We must thank that guy; I mean Tromer for helping us out, if not for him we will be crushed by those haughty high-class clan." The first elder said.

    After listening to the complaints and ideas of the elders, the clan leader take a sip of coffee...If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

    Suddenly, the tent''s entryway opened, revealing a panting man full of sweat. "Greetings clan leader and elders! A man comes to us saying that he''s the representative provided by the Sofori clan!"The man said hurriedly.

    "Let him come here." The clan leader said.

    ----

    At the top of Mt. Tri-mus a simple a house stood mostly made of woods apparently the woods are the same as the woods in the nearby forest, this is Tromer''s house. A teenager with natural white hair is sitting cross-legged at the front of a one-armed man while the man is talking as if teacher teaching his student.

    "Do you remember what I said yesterday?" The man said.

    "Yes master!" The teenager replied excitedly but with a hint of fear.

    Clearly, this is the pair of a master and disciple. He has something that he wants Farjan to do, a mission, a special mission rather.

    "I have a special mission for you."

    When Farjan heard what his master said he immediately took out something, a hammer. "I''m prepared! What am I gonna build today? You want a bigger house?"

    Tromer got dumbfounded by this scene."This kid is slightly getting on my nerves," He said to himself.

    "What do you think? Do I make you as my disciple to be a construction worker?"Tromer replied to Farjan slightly angry."What I want you to do is to find somethings for me in this world full of undiscovered treasures," he added.

    "Find somethings? Not just one but many?"

    "Yes kid, there are few."

    "So, what are those, master?"

    "It''s some things that will help me recover so most of it are medicinal plants and some are materials."

    "Medicinal plants? There are a lot of those in the dry market, we do not know how to use those so we just eat them."

    "Yeah, I know, but those are just common medicinal plants, which I need are special or somewhat rare medicinal plants to make the most effect."

    "Yes master, I understood." With that he turned to leave.

    But Tromer holds his hands before he can completely turn to leave. "What''s the problem master?"

    "You will leave immediately? You sure you can do what I told you to do?"

    "Yes master"

    Tromer hit Farjan''s head, "What the?!"Farjan said with a look of questioning.

    "You will just leave without knowing the details and other stuffs?"

    "Oh?! Sorry master."Farjan immediately realized that some details lacked. For example, he doesn''t know the medicinal plants that his master needs.

    "Okay, first I want you to read the intermediate alchemy books that I have here." With that he tosses around ten books that discuss the intermediate level of information about alchemy. "You need to first know more about alchemy because you will gather medicinal plants for me, I will give you the advanced alchemy books.

    after you finished those."He added.

    "Understood." Farjan replied excitedly after seeing the lots of books in front of him. He never expected that after becoming a disciple of this man, not only he can practice cultivation but also gets more knowledge and read lots of books. Now this knowledge-loving man suddenly becomes lively.

    "Go and read those, I will just call you if I have something to tell or ask for you. I expect you to finish that within half a month."Tromer said and leave immediately.

    Walking back home, he didn''t actually go straight to their village but he goes to the city and marketplace to go buy some food to eat with his family back home.

    And of course, as he walks, many strange gazes are targeted towards him while people are murmuring to each other. He is the first one of the Dowter clan to go to the marketplace now, so many people look at him combined with his fame as a man who accepts almost all jobs, it is not impossible that many people knew him.

    Farjan knows the reason behind these scenes playing in front of him, but he paid them no mind as if he does not see them nor hear them. After he buys the things, he needed he immediately go back home.

    But while he was walking home not that far from the marketplace in a dark alleyway full of garbages and rubbishes, a group of people suddenly reveal themselves, there are around a dozen of them and they all wear black clothes that covers almost all their body that only their eyes is seen. They hold thin swords, and they emit intense killing intent towards Farjan,who is staring coldly without much expression as if these people are not causing fear to him.

    From the looks of it, they are hired killers whose job is to kill someone with a request from somebody who has grudges with the other party. But unlucky of them they targeted Farjan who is now a second level cultivator.

    "Fight or surrender?" Farjan coldly said. It is clear as the light of the day that these people are not here to help him, instead they have bad intentions.

    The hired-killers just laughed at him in reply. A teenager asking them to surrender? It is a joke for them. What benefits should they get when they surrender to a mere teenager? Besides, what reason would they do so?

    With that the black clothed men attacked towards him in unison.

 Chapter 14: The Bell for Demons

    All the hired-killers attacked simultaneously, although their enemy is just a normal teenager in their eyes, they still want to do their job successfully without any mistake and to minimize the retaliation of the opposition.

    As they came near to Farjan, he immediately rotated his cultivation. He felt the energy and spiritual particles of the surroundings going along with him like he''s the master of them all.

    He dropped all the things he carries that he bought from the market and started stretching like he''s not really serious about the situation where his life is on the run.

    Seeing this action of Farjan, the hired-killers had their brows knitted, although their face is covered you could tell from their furrowed eyes that there is a question running through their heads. "What''s with this boy? Is he not scared at all? Is he really joking?"He''s holding a thin sword in his hand, and the only difference is that this mans eye is sharp and viciously looking towards the teenager.

    Although they do not necessarily need to spout those words still, this man is the only one to be angry by Farjan''s taunting.

    "Don''t bother with him, let''s just kill this guy and immediately go back to report."

    In Farjan''s mind, he''s thinking who will be the culprit of this scene, who is behind this. The number one suspect will be the Sofori clan because they had been humiliated yesterday and they''ve suffered a huge loss so they probably want to retaliate.

    "Anyway, we will know that eventually," Farjan said. He will know the culprit eventually when he interrogates them after he beat them up so he didn''t bother thinking who was the culprit.

    A black-clothed man who looks like the leader of them all lead the others in attacking Farjan, they charged towards him simultaneously. The leader initiated a sword attack as he swings his sword from up above going downwards targeting Farjan.

    You can see their swords shining brightly when the sunlight hit it indicating it''s sharp and deadly.

    As the decisive sword attack is going downwards the young man, he dodges sideward to the left and he throws a kick after, the man is propelled to the walls in the alleyways bouncing back to the ground.

    But after the man is kicked away, the other hired-killers attacked him. Although after seeing that this man is not ordinary that even their leader is kicked away as easy as eating or drinking, they still attacked with their mind settled as they can outnumber him.

    Another man dashed forward but as he was charging forward, instead of waiting for the man to be near him, Farjan initiated an attack and dashed towards the charging man, giving out a punch and when the punch hit the man he is thrown back away two meters from where is.

    Seeing this happening in front of them, the confidence of the hired-killers is reduced.

    "What with this young lad? He is just young, but he can fight with us, professional killers?"

    "He''s unordinary!" A man on the back most of the group shouted. After hearing this they all agreed. It''s true that this man is no ordinary at all, he can fight with professional killers who even killed the countless famous person even while they are guarded. Standing in front of this man, it is like their all years of practice and doing this job means nothing before the other party.

    After some discussion within the group, they immediately charged altogether to attack at once. A black-clothed man leaps up and then throw some small balls after it hit the ground, smoke covered the alleyway. Farjan can''t see them anymore and after a moment three man emerged from the smoke that covers them, holding a sword they attacked. The two-man immediately goes to the left and right side of Farjan while the other one attacked in the middle. They swung their sword in unison cornering Farjan.This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.

    "You''re done!"

    They smiled with viciousness as they think that Farjan will end up dead only to be disappointed by the next scene. Farjan jumped up and thrown a fist to the man in the middle. Their vicious smile is now gone replaced by shock and fear as they widened their eyes in disbelief while their jaws are also dropping.

    The fist struck the man, and he was thrown away. After striking a fist to the man in the middle, he takes the opportunity to kick the man in the right side and from the impact he takes the chance to turn around and kicked the other man on the left side.

    His movements are decisive and professional like he''s been fighting when he was just a kid. He looks like a valiant fighter, brave and bold.

    Three more down and adding the two earlier he knocked down a total of five men. Now there are seven more people. For these professional killers ganging up a teenager is laughable but experiencing a fight with the young man they did not regret being a laughingstock instead they are happy that they do this.

    "We must take the opportunity while the smoke is covering us! Let''s go!"Three more men attacked. Three daggers flew out from the smoke screen heading towards Farjan.

    These daggers are fast approaching him in just two seconds it comes in front of him. But Farjan didn''t even panic, he stretches out his arm and then unexpectedly he grabs a hold of this three daggers.

    After becoming a cultivator his reflexes increased greatly not just his strength and agility. By now these normal people are not a match for him.

    Suddenly, he throws the three daggers back to its owners. It is faster than what the opposing party has done and in just half a second it pierced through their abdomen going deeper that the dagger might come out on the other side but Farjan decreased his strength slightly when he throws the daggers so it does not pierce through totally.

    "What?!" Howling in anguish and pain, the three men widened their eyes in shock, they can''t believe their eyes. Their dagger that should''ve killed Farjan, killed them instead. They dropped to the ground with their blood spilling.

    The smoke screen is now gone revealing the four black-clothed men that is scared out of their wits. The man that is only a speck of dust in their eyes becomes a boulder that crushed them. They are now praying somebody will save them from this crisis.

    "We do not have any other chance of winning," the black-clothed guy on the right side said.

    Clearly, after fighting with this man, they didn''t expect something like this will happen, they will lose to a young man? What a joke?!

    "No, we have a chance to win," another black-clothed man said.

    "How?! Didn''t you see that this man from the Dowter clan is something like a monster or a demon?"After saying what he said his eyes immediately brightened with enlightenment.

    "Demon?" As if realizing something, with that he took out a bell.

    "This is a bell that our client gave us, he said we have a possibility that our enemies are demons so they gave us this. They said that if a demon hears it''s sound they will not only surrender they will also feel fear and eventually the demon will submit to us!"He said happily as they found their hope for survival.

    This bell is small, about 6 inches in height and with the with of 4 inches. It has patterns and symbols that are hard to understand.

    Farjan walked nearing towards them and then he said in an imposing manner, "Fight or surrender?"Asking a question to them and giving them a chance to live."If you surrender and tell who''s behind this, then I will let you all off," he added to persuade them to surrender. He does not want to fight anymore ''cause he feels like he''s fighting children and bullying the weak that can''t even make a scratch on him.

    "Surrender? Surrender your head!"The black-clothed man who holds the bell shouted mockingly. He has the enemy''s weakness so why surrender to him if he can make him surrender to himself?

    Farjan had his brows furrowed, clearly, he doesn''t expect this outcome. After beating up their comrades, he saw these men cowering in fear earlier and with their eyes, he saw them pleading. But now, they suddenly got the guts to say such words, what in the world was happening?

    Then, the man who holds the bell shake it, joyfully. He''s excited to see this demon to surrender and submit to him and later on he will command him to lick his shoes.

    Ping! Ping! Ping!

    The sound of the bell rang out in the alleyway, and with expectant eyes, he wants to see the young man cower in fear of them.

    Farjan knitted his brows, "What are these guys planning? What was that bell? I sense something from it."

    Seeing Farjan knitted his brows, the man''s eyes glowed, "He must be experiencing something inside, by now he might be feeling fear and wanting to escape," he said to himself.

    "Do not plan to escape ''cause we will never let you off?" another black-clothed man said.

    The man holding the bell is sighing in his heart. "If we just used this earlier, there would be no bloodsheds in our side and we can easily defeat this man. I will let you pay for this!"He said indignantly."

    "Come to me!" He commanded Farjan.

    Unexpectedly, Farjan walked towards him.

    "This works!"

    "Yeah!"

    "Now, you will pay to us!"

 Chapter 15: A Woman killed the Killers

    As Farjan is walking towards them, the man who holds the bell is now very joyful. Feeling relief and being away from the hands of the God of Death. They are now sure of their survival. When Farjan is just a half meter away from the bell he stopped. After they saw Farjan stopped he immediately commanded him, "You! Kneel down and lick my shoes, if you do this I will somewhat forgive..."

    But after finishing his words he saw Farjan''s fist rushing towards him. His mouth gaped in shock, clearly, he doesn''t expect that this man will try to punch him after surrendering to him.

    Thud!

    The man is propelled back several meters away, his teeth are removed and his face is now hard to paint, you can''t even recognize him. Hitting the ground, he bounced many times and eventually he lost consciousness. Who can stand to the might of a punch with the strength of a cultivator? Even if he''s only at the second level, he is still a cultivator and his opponent is a mere mortal human.

    The other three widened their eyes in disbelief.

    "Isn''t he supposed to submit to us, then why he attacked?"

    Farjan looked at them furrowing his brows, "What? Are you finished with the last jokes of your lives?"He said to them coolly.

    By now, they are truly scared witlessly, their eyes are becoming wet, their bodies trembled so much that even they started to pee their pants. Although their job as a hired-killers requires their life is put on the run, but by the years of successfully doing their job without any trouble they started to have confidence that no one can beat and kill them, unfortunately, they run to this young demon and they remember that life will always come to an end. They started to think that this will be the punishment for all they''ve done.

    "Please spare me; I will do anything you want."

    "Me too, I''m ready to become your servant, just spare my life!"

    "Master, I will give you all my wealth just don''t kill me, I''m sure by the master''s age you''re interested in beautiful women, I can give them to you,"

    They are now pleading for their life, surrendering themselves and even to the extent of being a servant and giving away all their wealth to Farjan and offering beautiful women to his liking.

    Hearing this, Farjan asked them, "do you all surrender? If so, tell me who''s behind this, is it the Sofori clan?"

    The black-clothed men hesitate for a moment and after pondering for a moment, they gritted their teeth, ready to tell the truth. This is their only chance for survival, so they hold a grip unto it.

    "It''s the..." The black-clothed man in the middle spoke, but before he finished speaking he heard a strange sound.

    "Ah!"

    Thud!

    A body fell to the ground with a dagger pierced through his back. Blood spill to the ground. The dagger is somewhat extraordinary having an intricate pattern with a skull carved on the end of where you hold it.Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

    The black-clothed men are now shocked, why? Because the young man who killed and beat them is now lying there on the ground with a dagger on the ground. Clearly, Farjan got stricken on his back with a dagger.

    A woman revealed herself, wearing a black and white gown, her long hair is dark in color and she has a slim figure. This sexy woman held a trace of viciousness in her eyes but still, her beautiful face remained.

    She walked towards Farjan then she looked at the black-clothed men. "You useless bunch! Tsk," she sneered coldly at them and without hesitation, she took out three more daggers.

    Crying in fear, they kneeled and bow down their head that it hits the ground.

    "We''re sorry, we failed to kill him, he''s strong so we can''t beat hi..."

    But before he finished his words three daggers flew out piercing their throats.

    Farjan just barely saw this scene because his sight becomes cloudy and hazy. Before he closes his eyes he saw the blurry figure of the woman heading towards him saying "Screw this!"

    On a village filled with tents. The men are working together with their bodies drenched in sweat holding hammers while others are carrying bricks, blocks and other necessities for building houses with solid and sturdy foundation. Unlike their previous houses that easily crumbled under the attack of the Sofori clan Imperial Guards, the new houses being built now is a lot stronger and is on par on the houses of a high-class clan, therefore demolishing these houses is not that easy anymore as kicking a little stone.

    Pok! Pok! Pok!

    Rrrr! Rrrr! Rrrr!

    The sound of hammering and sawing rang throughout the whole area of Dowter clan territory as all people are busy. Even though there are people hired by the Sofori clan to build the houses, but still the males of the clan insist on helping. Because of being a low-class clan before they are used to working for themselves and obviously they created their houses using their own strength and sweat and entrusting the process of building their own houses to Sofori clan is an issue for them. Why would they trust their houses to one who destroyed their previous home? They still held a hint of resentment and doubt to the other party.

    The other citizens are also busy doing matters on their own. A small market was born by the clansmen who likes to deal with business. In this time of recovering and upgrading, different kinds of goods are needed by the people and the rising of this small market helps them to gain an equal benefit to both customer and seller. Instead of going out of their village to buy their necessities this market helps them to reduce their exhaustion and it helps the sellers to gain income.

    In a huge tent made as a substitute for the ancestral mansion for the time being. The clan leader together with the first elder is talking with a man who is known as the envoy of the Sofori clan to the Dowter clan, he is also the person in charge of the rebuilding of the Dowter clan. He is called Morris.

    "The rebuilding of the village started yesterday, this will finish after a few months of hard work." the envoy said. "Also, here are the golds that are included in the contract for compensation." With that, with a fling of his sleeves, the man beside him immediately moved out of the tent. After a minute he arrived again back to the tent bringing a chest and he handed it over to the envoy and then the envoy handed it over to the Dowter clan leader.

    The clan leader opened the chest and with his mouth agape, he saw the contents of the chest and thousands of gold coins filled the chest.

    This is their first time seeing such a huge fortune and even the first elder who is known as the impartial, upright, cold and silent became a completely different person. He looks at the chest as if he''s looking to his dear wife. It is proven that money can really change a person. It is somewhat normal for him to act like this because he is used to being poor. Even if he''s an elder, the Dowter clan is a poor clan and they didn''t have clan business like other clans so they don''t have money to split between them, the elders and clan leaders. He is like a beggar who suddenly caught sight of a million fortune.

    "Thank you very much!" the clan leader said gratefully. "Can we talk for a few minutes?" He added.

    "You''re welcome! Please excuse us."He said plainly and then he walked out of the room.

    Two hours have passed since then, the clan leader and the first elder talked about how they will budget the money they have. The other elders are busy with their own family matters so they are not present. They will just consult them later.

    "Father!" A woman said outside the tent.

 Chapter 16: Fierce Beast

    "Claira?" The clan leader said. Farjan is his grandson so, this woman is obviously his daughter, Farjan''s mother. "Come in," he said.

    Claira walked inside. She immediately said, "Farjan does not go home yesterday until now. He''s missing!"With a worried face.

    "He does not go home? Why would he do that? Don''t worry maybe he''s on his friend''s house," the clan leader said to ease the worry of his daughter.

    "Or maybe he''s on Mr. Tromer''s house. I heard Farjan call Mr. Tromer as his master. Maybe they are training."The first elder added.

    The clan leader nodded in response to the elder. Claira also nodded realizing and expecting that it must be the case if not, she will worry the whole day until Farjan didn''t go back home.

    ---

    Meanwhile, on the Sofori clan. A huge mansion stood with majestic air lingering around it. It has a big wooden door with intricate and complex patterns, on each side of the door two heavily equipped guards stood straight carrying an intimidating aura on them that makes someone who harbors ill intent to be afraid. This is the Ancestral Mansion of the Sofori clan. Unlike the previous Ancestral Mansion of the Dowter clan, this is more big and majestic even when compared to the other high-class clan. The Sofori clan has been reigning supreme on the Bigfield City for countless years and they also hold the big organizations here so, it''s normal for them to have this great fortune.

    In a wide hall, an old man stood angrily facing a young man who is kneeling on the floor. The elders are also standing on the sides.

    "Michael, you idiot! What have you done?!"The man said furiously, clearly, this man is very much infuriated at what happened.

    "Pardon me, clan master," Michael said on the verge of crying.

    The clan master immediately goes back home after receiving the bad news. His clan almost lost half of its treasure and they lose to a low-class clan, that''s a huge humiliation for his clan! And when he arrived only that time he becomes informed on all that happened and he just becomes angrier than ever before, he now knows that they only lose to a single man... with only an arm! What the hell! Now, he''s venting his anger on Michael.

    "Pardon? Pardon your head! You will receive a hundred lashes and also you will no longer have your position. From now on, you are a normal member of the Sofori clan. Be thankful I did not expel you from the clan. Now, go out! Leave!"

    Michael, who is on the verge of crying stood up and left the Ancestral Mansion.

    "Why does this happen to us? How? We are the Sofori clan!"

    "We are also dismayed by this, but that''s the truth, we lose and we promised to compensate and rebuild them, we accepted their unfair offer, because if not, our clan will no longer exist." An elder said to the clan master in reply with his face indicating that he''s full of remorse and guilt inside of him.

    "Okay, leave this to me. I will handle it," the clan leader said with a sinister smile on his face.

    At the top of a mountain known as Mt. Tri-mus, there is a simple house built there. Inside the house, a middle-aged man looking like he''s in the forties with a single right arm left. He''s touching his severed arm with a look of pain and suffering. The suffering is growing stronger as more time passes by and the curse is slowly spreading. If he cannot cure this curse, surely he will die.A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

    Thay Demon God Sword''s curse is something that can''t be treated easily. The curse has a lot of demonic energy in it and when a person is afflicted with it, his cultivation will slowly break down as the demonic energy will destroy his spiritual passageway.

    "That damned Darnce! I will never forgive him. I will make him pay for this!"Tromer said furiously."I need Farjan to get me the medicinal herbs. Only if I can do it myself. But this curse will worsen if I push myself."He added.

    On the other hand,

    A horse carriage is moving in the depths of Red fox forest. This forest is located several kilometers away from the center of the Bigfield City. Inside the carriage, a slim figured woman was sitting comfortably, in front of her an unconscious young man is inclining his head on the right side of the carriage. This carriage is a bit luxurious and two armored men are guarding it along the way on their own horses. Clearly, the woman inside is not ordinary.

    A few moments later the carriage stop and a guard said to the woman inside "Mistress, the sun is setting and the moon is rising. It is dangerous to continue our journey in the middle of the night, so I suggest that we stop and set a camp and continue this tomorrow."The man said respectfully although the woman has only remained inside not even bothering to take a look outside.

    After several seconds the woman responded, "What is there to be scared of?! You are a man yet you''re so afraid? Move on and the almighty Galvan, our god will guide and protect us."She said coldly.

    "B-bu-but..."

    "No buts! Do you dare disobey my commands?"

    "I would dare not to," the guard said, kneeling respectfully with his right foot. Then, he turned to look at the driver of the carriage, "Go! Move! Our mistress said that we shall continue!"He added.

    They continued to move the carriage even if the darkness surrounded them. They walked with a torch and a prayer.

    Three days have passed on the journey of the mistress who is behind Farjan''s injury. Farjan is still alive and right now he slowly opened his eyes. His vision is a bit cloudy yet, and he can only vaguely see the overall structure inside the carriage, at his sides two windows are opened as the daylight is shining through it. It is around nine o''clock in the morning and the view of a vast field is seen outside the carriage. Farjan closed his eyes again only to realize and ask himself...

    "What''s happening?" Then after asking that to himself he tries to recover his memories and after a few moments, different scenes are playing inside his mind, it is his memories before he woke up.

    "I am alive?!" He asked himself curiously, he remembered that a dagger stabs him and that by now he should be dead but right now, he is alive and well. He opened his eyes again when he heard a familiar voice of a woman, it is the voice of the woman who killed the hired-killers before, "Finally, you''re awake."she said without emotions.

    Farjan looked at her and then he saw a beautiful woman with a slim figure. Although you can tell that she is in her thirties but still the beauty on her face can be compared to other younger women. After looking at this beautiful lady he immediately asked a series of questions, "Who are you? Where am I? What happened to me? I remembered that I was stabbed by a dagger behind me by a woman! Why am I aliv..."Before he finished his words he suddenly realized that in the middle of his body, bandages are covering his wound.

    But to no avail, the woman didn''t answer his questions instead she just looked out the window on her right side unmoving.

    Farjan is still confused, "Is she the woman who tried to kill me? Or did she rescued and treated me?"Because his vision becomes cloudy and hazy that time, he cannot clearly see the face of the woman. He can only see that she was a woman because of her figure.

    "If she is the woman who tries to kill me, why would she treat me? Is she crazy?"This is the thought that ran through Farjan''s mind."Hey, where are we going? Who are yo.."but before he finished his question a sudden growl could be heard. The growl is like coming from a fierce tiger that is fighting with another savage beast. But unfortunately, the growl isn''t coming from a fierce tiger or a savage beast. It comes from more fierce and more savage source... Farjan''s stomach.

    Grrrrr!

    Roarrrr!

    Gulugulu

    Like the fiercest beast on Earth, his stomach is roaring relentlessly. He looked at the woman in front of him with embarrassment that his face is covered in red from blushing. He didn''t eat for three consecutive days because he''s unconscious. Even if he''s unconscious, his body is not and he is still alive. He still needs nourishment and absolutely that''s the reason why the fierce beast that lies on his stomach is roaring angrily.

 Chapter 17: Citizens in Rage

    The woman was shocked. This was the first time she heard such a wild sound coming from the stomach of a hungry person. She didn''t know if she should laugh or pity this young man. They are moving for three days but still they only past the first half of the journey. The location where they will go is far away. It takes a week to reach it. They will rest for an hour every five hours for the horse. But still the horses showed signs of fatigue, clearly, this time of rest is insufficient.

    She ordered to stop the carriage and they move out of it to take a rest and to eat. She let Farjan eat because she didn''t want this young man in his possession to die from hunger before she could go back to report. She treated Farjan''s wound because she and her superior want him to be alive, why would he let this man die?

    "Eat this." Then the woman throws a meat at him.

    "What is this all about?" Farjan asked curiously. He does have a hint of what''s happening and now he tries to ask and clarify but, unfortunately...

    "You have a lot of question! Can you shut your mouth? The time that you wake up, my peaceful life becomes noisy as hell. You will know the answers eventually!"The woman said angrily. Farjan didn''t get the answer he wants.

    Farjan only shut his mouth for now, but his mind is running. "Why didn''t she answer my questions instead of blabbing those things? She just used her saliva for nothing really important?"he said to himself.

    Now he''s sure that this woman is really the woman who killed the hired-killers and the one who stabbed the dagger behind him. If she is a good person, she will not treat him like this. If she is a good person, she will answer his questions wholeheartedly right?

    Farjan just gritted his teeth and eats the food until he''s full.

    After eating his fill, there is still time left before they move again. He knows that if he tried to escape this time, he doesn''t have any chance. Because the woman beside her is not ordinary. Although he can simply beat the guards but not her, he senses energy similar to that priest that fought Tromer. But he''s not certain in this premonition.

    After knowing that he stood no chance at all. He tried to circulate his cultivation inside him. He didn''t try to gather energies from the surrounding because he doesn''t want to gamble and be caught by the woman. After sensing the energies, he heaved a sigh of relief.

    The mistress is oblivious to what Tromer is doing, she is not a cultivator after all.

    Meanwhile, when the sun is setting many people gathered at the entrance of Dowter clan village holding shovels, pickaxe, ax, spears, torches, and anything that can be used as weapons.

    The whole clan is confused and at the same time scared. Why would almost half of the residents in the Bigfield city try to attack them? This is unreasonable! Now, the clan leader and the elders go out while the other members of the clan also hold weapons behind the elders.This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

    "What''s this?! The third elder asked the people."

    "Don''t play ignorance! We know that you are working under the demons!"A man holding a pickaxe said angrily.

    "W- wait, what?!" The clan leader asked.

    "You cannot fool us! The evidence is clear. Why does your clan prosper like this and how in the world did your clan win against the Sofori clan? Huh!"Another man sturdy figure said indignantly.

    "Let us explain..."

    "No more explanations! We know the truth!"

    "Yeah!"

    "Don''t fool us!"

    The crowd become furious and will never listen to what the Dowter clan will say. Endless shouts of mockery and insult flooded the clansmen of the Dowter clan.

    After a few minutes, a carriage and horses appeared at the scene, an old man goes out from the carriage wearing a white robe. This is the Grand Priest who fought against Tromer. A moment later he suddenly speaks, "Where''s that man? Surrender us the demon!"Then four other old men revealed themselves they are the priest of the cathedral.

    "Wait! Tromer is not a demon!"The clan leader said.

    "You saw what happened right! That kind of power, if not from the almighty Galvan who else can that power comes from? He''s colluding with the demons! You''re colluding with the demons!"The Grand Priest said with his eyes held a trace of anger.

    The clan leader and the elders didn''t answer because they also didn''t know how Tromer got that kind of strength. Even they themselves are uncertain. How will they answer?

    Seeing them like this, the Grand Priest just sneered at them."Speechless huh? My fellow citizens and blessed by Galvan, let us find the traces of the demon and the demon himself inside their clan!"He added.

    "Let''s go!"

    "Yeah!"

    The crowd becomes more agitated. But the clan leader stopped them and said, "You cannot just enter inside our territory like that!"

    "We must! If not we will be killed by that demon. If you try to stop us, then you''re guilty of colluding with the devil!"He added.

    With this kind of threat, the clan leader and the elders didn''t have something to say. If they stopped them, they would be accused of colluding with the demon, if not, their whole clan will be subject to searching and even their private belongings will be questioned. Even the slightest mistake or suspiciousness in their clan will lead to accusations. Either way, it will lead them to accusation, and they will be deemed guilty.

    "Wait!" the first elder suddenly stepped out to negotiate.

    "What?" A priest replied.

    "You suddenly go into our territory accusing us of something we don''t know. Let''s put it like this. We will persuade Tromer to talk to you and tomorrow, you can go back here to test and to know if we he''s a demon or affiliated with the demons. If he''s a demon then, we are guilty, we can compensate and will promise to hand him over to you. If not you will also compensate us for this ruckus. It is reasonable and fair right?"

    After thinking and talking with each other the Grand Priest finally decided, "Okay fine, we will be back here tomorrow, I don''t know what you''re planning, but in the name of the almighty Galvan, the truth will prevail."Then they turned around and left after they leave the crowd also left the place leaving behind gazes of contempt.

    Then the leader turned to look at the first elder along with the other elders.

    "What are you up to?"

    "If Tromer is a really a demon then we will let him deal with it, he''s powerful right. The priest lost to him before so now it will be the same. If he''s not then, it''s also good for us. For now, let''s talk with Tromer and ask him."

    "Aren''t you being disrespectful? He saved us then we will do this to him?"The second elder said.

    "This is our only choice. Do you have any other plan?"

    The others became silent. Clearly, this is their only choice. The only problem is Tromer. They must persuade him, despite this rudeness they''ve done.

    "Okay, it is settled then. We just have to pray that he will not refuse."The clan leader said.

    "I hope so."

 Chapter 18: The Book of Demons

    Then without hesitation, they head towards Mt. Tri-mus to where Tromer resides. After several minutes, they reached his house and the clan leader knocked the door.

    Tok! Tok! Tok!

    A few moments later, the door opened and a man emerged from it.

    At the Sofori clan territory in their clan''s Ancestral Mansion, Ancestral Mansions are the place where the clan leader and the elders do their meeting. It is also the place where big celebration or events are held. The elders and the clan leader are meeting when suddenly a knock is heard through the door of the meeting room.

    "This is your servant, Clyde, seeking an audience to the clan master."

    "Come."

    The huge wooden door opened revealing a man wearing robes. He walked straight until he''s near to the clan leader and elders. One of his knees bent down while his face was facing the ground.

    "Speak. What happened to your mission?"The clan leader asked while the elders are dumbfounded, they didn''t have any clue on what''s the clan leader is saying. Mission?

    Then Clyde spoke, "The residents of the rally to the Dowter clan territory bringing weapons of their own. The plan succeeds, and the people doubted the Dowters colluding with the demons. The priests of the cathedral also rushed when they are informed that the people are rallying. They plan to use the crowd to oppress them."

    Clearly, this is what the clan leader said when he will handle the problem. He didn''t want to attack them in the broad daylight really but in only in the shadows. This man is a schemer. With a clan leader like this, the clan prospers almost for a long time. He just added fuel to the rumors using Clyde. Clyde just said to the people that there is really a demon that attacked the Sofori clan. Obviously, the people didn''t believe it but after some consideration, they started to smell something amiss. How can a low-class clan win against Sofori clan? Before they don''t mind this, but now that Clyde fuelled their suspicious thoughts, they rally out of fear. They thought that maybe if they can outnumber the demon they will have a high chance of winning.

    "You made a good job. You will receive another gold for this. You can now leave."

    Clyde added, "Another thing Your Highness, Tomorrow, the demon will partake on the church''s test to see if he really is a demon."

    "Oh..." The clan leader said for a long time, pondering over the matter with a wide grin on his face full of wrinkles.

    After Clyde had walked out of the room, the elders immediately asked him.

    "Your Highness Baudry, what is this?" The clan''s Grand Elder asked.

    Then the clan leader explained them his plot of overturning the Dowter clan. "If they got news that we are the culprit behind this plot, surely we will be dead. I will remind you Your Highness that that man is extraordinary. Even the powers of the church are not a thing to him. Our guards and the Royal knights all died and has been trampled before him. If he retaliates again, surely we are doomed."The Grand Elder said worriedly.

    "Don''t worry, I am good at these things. If that man is proven to be a demon; the citizens will destroy the clan. If he dared to fight with the citizens, it will raise the ire of the people and this news will become a talk to the whole continent and out of fear, the people will cooperate and will use all the means to kill and destroy them, bwahahhaha!"The clan leader said full of expectation coming from his imagination. Just thinking of what will happen to the people who claim victory over their clan before makes his smile spread wide further.Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work!

    On top of Mt. Tri-mus.

    "That''s what happened. The church is oppressing us with the citizens. We don''t have any choice buy this. Mister, I hope you will take consideration of this. Pardon us for being disrespectful."After the clan leader of the Dowter clan explained the situation, he immediately requests for his help.

    But Tromer''s answer shocked them, instead of saying "okay fine" or "I refuse," he asked, "You are the clan leader right? What''s your name again?"

    "Um, right. My name is Julius Dowter. Farjan''s grandfather."He replied.

    "Is it okay if I call you Julius only? Personally, I didn''t like those formalities and honorifics."

    "Sure. Julius is fine."

    "Okay, I will tell you the truth. I am not a demon. The true demon is acting like a god. Earlier you''re talking to them."

    "Huh?!" Julius and the elders instantly frowned and on their faces a huge trace of confusion is broadly displayed. "Sorry? What are you talking about? Demon? Acting like a god? Talking to them earlier?"

    "Mister Tromer can you please say it straightforward." The third elder said with a huge frown.

    "The church."

    "Yeah! The church is oppressing us, and we need yo- w-wait, what? Don''t tell me the church? Demon?"

    "Yeah, the church and their ''god'' is a demon, if you do not believe me then ask them to give out their emblems and look at this book." With that, he took out a book and flipped it in a certain page. "This is the book of the demons. Galvan is a lower demon of the abyss. This is his emblem, take a look at the church''s emblem and see it for yourself. I have things to do, and I think you can handle it from now on."Tromer turned back and goes inside his house.

    The Dowters all scratched their head. Clearly, Tromer didn''t want to attend tomorrow, and they need to rely on themselves with the help of the book. They turned and walked away from the house, but after a minute the door opened again and Tromer goes out.

    "Where''s Farjan? Tell him to come to me immediately."

    Then Julius instantly frowned, "Farjan is not at home he didn''t come back home a few days ago. We thought that he was here with you?"

    "What?! He''s not here also, a few days ago he''s not going here."

    "Is that true?" Julius asked worriedly. "Then where is he?"

    "I don''t know, If I know, why would I ask you?" Tromer replied.

    -----

    After heading back, Julius immediately read the book with the elders.

    The book is half an inch thick. Its pages are made of yellowish paper. After patting the book, the dust flew away. Clearly, this book was made many years ago. Flipping open the book you can see the images and symbols and the information about it. These are the depictions of the demons and their powers, abilities and other information about them.

    When Julius saw the different demons inside his mouth gaped open. From lower demons up to the higher demons, it is all recorded. Many names here are unknown to him. His body hairs stood as he read several lines from it. After turning to a certain page, an image depicting a person with three pairs of arms and a head like that of a panther is displayed. On the right side of the paper, the emblem that symbolizes this demon is also drawn out.

    Below the images, a name that has a huge font is written there, it said ''Galvan'' below this name the information about this demon is written. Julius read it while the elders listen to him.

    Their jaws dropped and their brows knitted as the information is transferred into their minds. The book has given them about the powers of this demon and his weaknesses.

    Galvan is a demon from the abyss that is being worshipped by some mortals to give them powers beyond ordinary. Although these powers are not that powerful for cultivators, still, it is useful for mortals or crippled cultivators. He was an ordinary servant demon before but after getting some powers out of unknown pure luck he becomes a lower demon.

    Although he is a lower demon, he has a weakness too. Because he got his powers just out of pure luck and not of cultivation his powers are unstable and when it is in the middle of the afternoon around 11:00 up to 1:00 his powers are being suppressed by an unknown force.

    "Is this for real?" Julius said.

    "I don''t know, no one knows. Besides, how in the world does Tromer get this book?"The Fourth elder said.

    "Let''s not argue over it. This book has a clear and detailed information about demons. So there''s a possibility it is true. We''ll just hope that this book will be useful."

    Then Julius said, "Okay, I have a plan. We will make those old men from that demonic church be embarrassed and regret that they fight against us!"

 Chapter 19: She has Spirit Stones?!

    The moon is shining above, giving some faint light to the trees and woods on top of Mt. Tri-mus. Near the cliff of this mountain, a simple wooden house is built. Inside, a middle age man is sitting on a wooden chair. Almost all of the things here is made out of wood from inside to outside.

    He rotates his cultivation but after a few seconds, his face darkened and beads of sweats are flowing off from his face. He felt stabbing pain whenever he will try to rotate his cultivation because the curse is also rotating along, spreading through his spiritual passageways. This is not the first time he felt this way. It''s been like this before, but the difference is that it is not painful as this and the pain will take effect after many hours or a day.

    Tromer gritted his teeth and promised himself that he will take revenge and make that damned Darnce pay for what he has done tenfolds of what he felt right now.

    "The curse is getting worse! I need to treat it! Damn! Where''s Farjan? He needs to get me the required medicinal herbs as soon as possible."

    After contemplating about the current situation he thought that there''s a huge possibility that something is amiss on Farjan. He does not go home and doesn''t go back home since I last talked to him. "Maybe I should go and find the medicinal herbs available at the plantation and also I will find that brat."

    ----

    Up in the sky, the sun is hanging directly in the middle of the clear sky, although there are some clouds here and there. Below this vast sky, high mountains and deep forests stood next to the road in between the two mountains. On the road, there is a carriage and two armored men riding their horses is moving along the path. Inside the carriage, a woman is sitting beside the carriage''s window and on the other side, a young man is sitting staring at the woman.

    The woman stared back him and she opened her lips, "You are a demon''s minion, don''t look at me."

    Farjan''s mind instantly reeled when he heard what the woman said. "Demon''s minion? What the hell?"

    "Don''t deny it. The Grand Priest at your church reported to us. Hopefully, I am in the Petroit City, and I got there soon if not, you will not be captured before you wreck havoc in the city. I didn''t expect you to be young. The grand priest said that you were a middle-aged man. But you''re from the Dowter clan so, you must be the person. I also saw how you fight, for a young man to fight with those professional killers, surely, you are a demon."

    Farjan immediately understands what happened. After Tromer had defeated the Sofori clan and the Church, the Grand Priest immediately reported the matter to the higher-ups. Luckily, this extraordinary woman is at the nearest city from Bigfield City. Unfortunately, the one that they captured is not Tromer but Farjan. Suspicion immediately arose because he''s a member of the Dowter clan, probably they thought that he''s Tromer and the demon originates from their clan.

    "Are you from the church?"

    "I am Sarah, a member of the special force of the church, the Heaven Knights!" She said proudly.

    The Heaven Knights are the people specially trained and blessed with powers.

    "I am not a demon!"

    "Shut up! Then, where does your strength comes from? Surely it is not from god because there is only one god in this world and that is the almighty Galvan. I am sure that you''re not a follower of the Almighty. You should not speak lies and nonsense before me..."Then she pointed a dagger at Farjan''s throat.

    Farjan''s face is immediately covered with sweat as the dagger gets close to his throat until its point is touching his skin. He just quieted down because he knows that this woman will not accept anything he says nor believes him.

    "Good boy, you know when to speak and when not to." Her face showing a sinister smile. Then she put her dagger back, then she immediately drew out a glowing blue stone. The stone is a circle in shape and has a diameter of five centimeters. This particular stone is not a normal stone if you will look far from it. But if you look close, its appearance is like a stone but a shiny one.The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.

    "That''s..." Farjan''s jaws dropped as he saw this stone. Why? Because he knows that this is no ordinary stone. He read it on the books given by Tromer to him. This stone can help cultivators on their cultivation by absorbing the spiritual energy inside. This is called spirit stones. Cultivators will either use it for cultivating or use it as a currency when buying or trading. It is the money of the cultivators. "Spirit stones!"

    "This is a spirit ston... Huh?! How come you know these? These are only known by the higher ups of the church. This stone gives us powers when we absorb it. We are given a piece of this every month."

    Sarah sat cross-legged and imitates a cultivating stance. Farjan knows that Sarah is not a cultivator because he can''t see any spiritual energy on her. Only some black motes of lights that are invisible to the eyes of mortals.

    He used some spirit stones given to him by Tromer. From what he observed these stones has given him a great amount of spiritual energy. After absorbing about 10 of these stones, his cultivation goes up until he was at the advanced stage of the second level of the spiritual stage.

    He has some on his spiritual pouch. He suddenly thought, "what if I give her some and asked for my freedom?" But after pondering over the matter he dropped this thought. It may seem plausible, but this is a great risk for him. If he handed some, Sarah would begin to question him about where did he get it and why he has possession of these precious stones. Besides, there''s a possibility that when he handed some spirit stones, Sarah might assault him and forcefully get the spirit stones. He can''t fight back now how much later when Sarah does forcefully get the precious stones.

    He just looks at Sarah who is busy absorbing the spirit tone while pondering on how will he get out of the chains that bind him.

    Back to the Bigfield City on the gates of the inner city. Tromer is standing looking at the surroundings. People are walking everywhere, stalls are built on the sides of the road offering the customers different variety of items. From fruits and vegetables up to personal belongings. Many carriages and horses with baskets are also moving in this busy city market. This is the place where Farjan works. Tromer goes all the way here to find him and also get some valuable information about the missing young man. He knows that Farjan is not by chance lost. Farjan lives here in the Bigfield about his whole life so the probability of him being lost is not that high.

    "That brat, what happened to him? I need him to get the medicinal herbs. If he''s not around maybe, I can get it myself."He said to himself."I''ll just ask around, maybe some people here know him."

    Walking around, he asked the civilians around. He also asked the vendors, but their answer didn''t satisfy him. They know Farjan, but they didn''t know what happened to him nor where he goes.

    He keeps roaming the city for many more minutes. He got exhausted and bored, so he decided to go to a tavern that he saw while walking along the streets. He walked inside, sit at the table on the corner of the room.

    He ordered a drink. He paid 60 silver coins for this wine. This particular wine is the most expensive of its kind inside this tavern, but for Tromer? 40 silver coins are not a big deal. Even if he paid 400 gold coins, he wouldn''t care. Fortunately, the currency used here is simple circular bronze, silver and gold coins without any symbol or sort of design. The people must be lazy that they don''t bother such things. Also, this helps all the people and kingdoms to instill a trade with this universal kind of coin. From Tromer''s world, gold coins are used by mortals. But cultivators use spirit stones for trade. A single spirit stone is equivalent to a hundred gold. That''s the value of a stone that can enhance a person''s cultivation. Of course, he has many of those. He has quite a fortune. These gold coins are just trash in his eyes. He''s grateful he didn''t throw these off because of his laziness.

    He drank a mouthful of wine. This wine is not that delicious, but a normal one, at least for him only, but for the common people around? It''s a luxury.

    A group of men gathered on a long table near him. They drank beer and laughed as they exchanged stories. A man on the right side near the window started to talk. "Did you know that people clothed in black are found in an alley near the slums?"

    "Yeah, I heard that. They are said to be hired-killers, but they are the ones who are killed. Rumors also said that they were pursuing a demon."A bulky bald man replied.

    "Demon? The Dowter clan is said to be minions of the demons, but who knows if it''s true."The man with a farmers hat said.

    "Demon or not, they are professionals! How can they lose? Besides they are utterly defeated. My friend told me that he caught a glimpse of the scene but out of fear that he might be caught up in, he ran. He told me that they are only fighting a single young man."A fat man said plainly."

    Tromer overheard their discussion and after realizing that the story might leade to Farjan''s case. He stood up and walked to their table.

    The men drinking on this table are startled when they heard a voice saying...

    "Can you please elaborate your discussion for me?"

 Chapter 20: Investigating the Crime Scene

    "Who the hell are you?" The bulky man asked him.

    He immediately put a violent reaction towards Tromer. "Go away from us! Or else..."

    "Or else what?" Tromer replied before the bulky man can finish his words. He placed his hand on the table. After a second, he removed it and surprisingly, five gold coins are revealed.

    "Keep calm. I am just asking." Tromer replied with a grin.

    The people on this table immediately know the meaning of this.

    Although Tromer can get the information easily if he uses brute force, for him, it has a lot of work and he doesn''t want to waste his time and energy on this lowly mortals. Even his conscience cannot bear bullying the weak. It''s just a mere five gold coins, nothing much for him.

    The bulky man looked again at Tromer but now, his face doesn''t reveal any trace of hostility from before, instead he produced a wide smile of happiness then he said, "Or else... you can drink with us if you don''t want to go away. Hehehe."

    Tromer just looks at this greedy man helplessly. It''s true that money can change a man''s attitude. Although the bulky man is the greediest, the smile of other people on this table is the same as him. Tromer shook his head for these shameless bunches.

    You cannot blame them for their attitude. Five gold coins have a huge value here in this world. It can buy them a decent house already. They can also please themselves with many women if they want to.

    Tromer sat beside the bulky man. This beefy man is called by his companions as Doval. Doval signaled to Sendo, the fat man to start telling his story to Tromer.

    After half an hour, Tromer, along with the bunch of drunkards emerged from the tavern. After Sendo had told him the story, Tromer requested to bring to him to his friend who saw the scene.

    They walked along the inner city. Tromer at the frontmost, surrounded by these men. They walked as if Tromer is their boss and they are the subordinates. Many people threw a frowning gaze unto them. These men are famous as the ''Drunkard Bothers'' so, seeing them walking around the streets proudly, following a single-handed man like he is their sacred god is a bit surprising.

    They noticed their gazes, but they didn''t mind them as long as they profited. After a few minutes, they arrived in the slums, and they entered the place.

    Gloomy feeling surrounded the place. Houses are mended of woods. Garbage are anywhere as the flies are flying above it. Darkness looms at everywhere even if the sun above is blazing. Children are playing while their garments and faces are full of dirt.

    They walked inside and they headed to a certain street and walked again for a few minutes until they arrived at a house made of putrid woods. Clearly, this house was built several years ago and withstood different temperature, from the scorching heat of the sun up to the flood of the storm. The fat man knocked the door three times.

    The door didn''t immediately open, but a voice suddenly said, "Who are you? What is your business here?"

    "Orlie! This is me, Sendo. I''ll just ask something." Sendo the fat man answered.

    The door opened and a man at his thirties emerged from it. Wearing rugged and tattered clothes full of dirt.

    "What is it?" Orlie asked him. He saw the people around, and he knows that they are all Sendo''s drinking friends except for one guy behind him with a single arm. "Oh! You managed to recruit another drunkard huh?!"

    Sendo immediately refuted him, "Hey! No! He''s not a drunkard. He''s our benefactor."

    Orlie revealed a shocked expression and also a confused one. "Benefactor? What a joke! I know you''re drunk so don''t mess with me right now. Go and get drunk, just don''t disturb me here. Go back when you''re not drunk!"Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.

    Hearing this from his irritated friend, he grabbed him, and he placed his arms over Orlie''s shoulder then, he pulled him away and whispered him the whole situation.

    "Five gold coins! Heavens! That''s a lot of money! He simply gave that? Are you sure?"

    "Yes, I am! Just help me with this and tell him what you saw that day and if he is satisfied, he might give you incentives." Sendo fuelled his mind with tempting words.

    After they talked for a while. Orlie has accepted the request and then go back to Tromer. Looking at this guy with a single arm, Orlie couldn''t help but doubt his friend''s words. How can a man that is in a pitiful state like this do have much money?

    Then after Sendo formally introduced his friend to Tromer. Orlie began to narrate the things he saw at the alleyway near the slums.

    "Black-clothed people surrounded a young man. The young man has white hairs, oval shaped face with a pointed chin and a well-shaped body figure. I only caught a glimpse at the back figure of the man. While the people surrounding him are obviously professional hired-killers based on their swift and decisive movements. I don''t know why they were trying to kill him. I only heard a few of what they said like ''demon'' and they will report after they finished him. Probably, to their client." Orlie recited all that he saw that day."And after that, I ran ''cause I fear that they might kill me if they saw me peeking. I''m sorry for the lack of information." He added.

    Tromer just nodded in response. He is now certain that the man he described is Farjan, his one, and only disciple. As for the people behind this, he has some inkling now.

    While Tromer is pondering. Orlie is looking at him with eyes glowing brightly. After coming back to his senses, Tromer saw Orlies''s expectant eyes. He broke the silence and said, "Bring me to that alleyway and I will give you gold coins."

    "Yes, I will!" He answered excitedly. His eyes are glowing than ever before. His smile ran held a trace of happiness, gratefulness and tantalizing. He is living in the slums, obviously, he''s very poor that eating for two times a day is very hard to achieve, even only once. Acquiring gold coins is not this easy so, he immediately grabbed the opportunity and doesn''t let it pass by his hands.

    They walked again. Outside the slums near the border of the inner city, there''s an alleyway leading a shortcut to the Dowter clan territory. But these alleyway is somewhat dark and only a few people pass by here.

    "Few people from the other lower class clan of the outer city are using this way to go to their place. The Molan clan, the Dayen clan, the Girum clan and the Dowter clan had their villages beyond this alleyway." Orlie explained.

    Tromer examined the area and what Orlie said is true, this alleyway is dark and also dirty. He walked through it and suddenly he bent his knees and looked at the ground. Examining this place, his brows connected and his eyes narrowed. He examined it again and his eyes narrowed accordingly. After that, he sensed an evil intent and using his spiritual sense he saw black motes of light floating above the ground. "I sense something... demonic," He thought.

    Looking at the man bent on his knees and frowning from time to time. The ''drunkard brothers'' couldn''t help but think of this man as mentally ill. He casually throws gold coins and observing like a detective yet you can''t see the slightest wisdom on his face. They just look at each other knowing the other one''s thought.

    Tromer instantly got an idea of who is behind this. "That damned church, I think they like another beating from me." He said coldly.

    He turned to the drunkard brothers and said, "Lead me to the church!"

    Doval asked him, "Do you want to go to the church now? The grand priest and some other priest are on the outer city near the Dowter clan territory, but the church is still open if you insist on going, only some sisters or brothers of the church may entertain you there."

    "Bring me to those demons!" Tromer replied.

    "I will purify them using my hands, and I will let their god see them in a miserable state." He thought. Although he only has a single hand, he still said that he would purify them with his hands. Maybe he''s not used to being a single armed person.

    Doval stared at him with a look of great confusion as his brows twitched and his eyes narrowed. "Demons? Did he mean the Dowter clan?" He whispered to the man beside him with a farmer''s hat.

    "I think it must be the case? Otherwise, who will he call demon if not the Dowter clan? They are the only ones rumored having a connection with a demon." The man replied.

    Doval just nodded but still, the confusion is lingering on his mind as displayed by his constantly narrowed eyes.

    "This way." Doval walked forward straight the alleyway leading to the low-class clan including the Dowters; he is followed by Tromer and the others.

    After walking for several minutes they arrived near the Dowter clan territory, and to his surprise, Tromer saw a huge crowd of people forming a circle as they surround the church delegates and the members of the Dowter clan.

    Some people have different weapons like sword, iron ax, shovel or anything that can be used to injure a person. Some others are just onlookers waiting here just to watch the scene because of their curiosity.

    "Interesting!" Tromer said with a grin on his face.

 Chapter 21: Strengthening Myself

    Farjan is sleeping inside the carriage when he felt a sudden stop. He bounced from his seat and his head moved forward abruptly but soon got back on its original position resting on the carriage''s seat. His mind jolted and attempted to ask, but Sarah has done it first.

    "What happened?" Said Sarah with a narrowed eyes and angry facial feature.

    The guards outside heard her complaint and one of them immediately said, "Mistress, we''re near the outer city of Heltek Kingdom. Carriages are asked to line up to be examined by the city guards to find suspicious and illegal goods."

    "Tell them that a Heavenly Knight from the church of Galvan is inside this carriage. They will surely let us in immediately."

    "Yes, Mistress." Answered the guard.

    The guard immediately moved forward towards the city guards.

    "Why do they need to make us line up with these commoners? We''re from the church! I am a Heavenly knight. I can beat them up!" Sarah harangue inside the carriage.

    Farjan just looked at this haughty woman in front of him. He''s been traveling with her for days and all along he thought of different plans to free himself.

    The church''s reputation in this kingdom is quite high. The battle prowess of each Heavenly Knight cannot be underestimated. Because of their extraordinary power that most people believed comes from Galvan their god, they have a high standing here as they are asked by the king for some special missions. They also serve as special forces here so they are highly regarded.

    Even the normal priests here are respected. Although most people don''t convert into believers, some people who want to be powerful are trying their best to join the ranks of Heavenly Knights. The reason why not all the people are converting themselves into believers is that they are focused on getting income and working, the church will be an additional burden for them if they joined them. The benefits are not high for a normal person, but it is favorable to those who wanted to be strong. Galvan is a god who blesses power and not money. Besides, many people have tried to join in the church as priests or heavenly knights, but the examination and the selection of future knights and priests are very hard. Their standards are high, and every person is required to have a firm faith on Galvan. They will undergo the rigorous training after being selected.

    You can say that they don''t just have extraordinary powers but their physical strength, mental fortitude, spiritual faith is also trained. Fighting is the specialty of Knights and priests as vessels so no one can look down on them.

    Few moments have passed and the guard before is walking back to the carriage carrying the news together with a city guard.If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.

    "The King, His Majesty, ordered us to carefully inspect all the incoming person and carriages regardless of any status, even the kings or delegates from other kingdom needs yo undergo this inspection. Please bear with us. Sorry for the trouble." The city guard said.

    "What major thing happened that demands us to undergo this inspection?" Sarah said irritatedly.

    "We don''t know also. We are just asked to do this task. Sorry I can''t answer your question." The guard said prudently.

    Sarah waved her arm as a sign that they are dismissed. Both of the guards go back to their duty.

    "Pfff" Farjan tried to conceal his laughter. Sarah has been turned down after she just said that they will surely get inside immediately because of her status as Heavenly Knight.

    When Sarah heard him, she immediately burns with anger and embarrassment. She again swiftly pointed her dagger at Farjan''s neck, directly at his Adam''s apple. Farjan raised his head while his eyes are looking down on Sarah with a hint of panic.

    "S-sorry, calm down." He said nervously while he was trying to prevent Sarah from stabbing him.

    Sarah glared at him furiously. Her eyes widened declaring a threat to him. "Don''t you dare? She said madly.

    "I dare not to." He replied. Then, Sarah slowly moved back her hand that holds the dagger while still glaring at her captive. She can''t kill this young man because if she does so, the higher-ups will get mad for squandering this precious demon that can be used as a great sacrifice to their gid, Galvan.

    She sat back on the couch and waited until they got inside the kingdom.

    As they wait, Farjan patted his spatial pouch that hangs beside his waist, suddenly, three spirit stones emerged from it and Farjan grabs a hold of these spirit stones. Now, he is at the advanced stage of second-level of the Spirit realm. He plans to use these stones to cultivate and empower himself until he breakthrough. He sat in a meditation position while holding the spirit stones that he carefully hides from Sarah that is sitting in front of him.

    Currently, Sarah is just looking out of the window. He caught sight of Farjan as he was meditating. Fortunately, she is not a real cultivator so; she cannot see the glowing motes of light and energies gathering on Farjan. If she can see this she will surely panic and if she also saw the three spirit stones that Farjan had on his hands, she will be alarmed by several folds.

    "What''s with this guy?" He thought, "Is he trying to imitate my meditation when I absorbed the spirit stones?" He sneered at Farjan, "Ha! Good luck! Do you think you can get powers just by imitating me? Never!"

    Farjan''s eyes are closed so he can''t see the sneers and pitiful expressions displayed by Sarah. While he meditates he felt the surrounding energies gathering on him, the stabbing pain from before is now gone. What he felt right now is the relaxing flow of spirit essence from the spirit stone and the additional energies around him.

    The spirit essence is like a clear and pure water flowing through his spiritual passageways. His muscles are slowly stretched as he felt his strength increasing.

    The powers are forming a vortex as he absorbed the spirit stones. It forms ripples in the air, and the energies became excited as it vibrates restlessly in the air. After a few moments a slight blast coming from his body happened, it formed an impact as the carriage shook abruptly.

    "What happened?!" Said Sarah anxiously.

    "We don''t know, Mistress," The guards outside said.

    Farjan looked at his body and he close his hands, suddenly, he felt a strength more powerful than before.

    "Ah!" He said with a trace of relief.

    He successfully breakthrough and has reached the third-level of Spiritual Stage.

    "This time I can fight back!"

 Chapter 22: Spouting Nonsenses!

    Meanwhile...

    Outside the territory of the Dowter clan, in the middle of a circle of a huge crowd, two factions are facing-off each other. Any person around would feel the tension building up between these two parties and the scorching heat coming from the sun up above also fuelled the heat that everybody felt right now.

    It is around 12:00 in the middle of the afternoon. Although there is a scorching heat lingering on everybody, still, the people around had their interest never wanes. They are anticipating the outcome of this face-off.

    Soka, a man on his thirties is among the group of people that brought a weapon and displayed hostility towards the Dowter clan. He was shouting furiously when suddenly, a man tapped his left shoulder. He turned to look at the person who tapped his shoulder only to see a single-armed middle-aged man.

    "What''s happening?" The man asked him.

    "The Dowter clan is subject to be inspected for colluding with a demon!" Soka replied with a hint of anger. "Don''t go near them, maybe they will sacrifice you to the demon if you are captured by them. I''m just giving you an advice so please keep this in your mind."

    The man nodded back to him in reply and turned around to go away. Soka just shook his head as he also felt a bit pity towards the man because he only had an arm. "How does he gain income? He can''t work!"Soka thought."It''s none of my business." Then, he turned back to what he was doing before, shouting furiously and raising his ax with a wooden handle from time to time.

    Several minutes later, Tromer stood on a higher platform but a little bit farther to the scene, but with his eyes of a cultivator, this is no problem at all. Behind him, his sidekicks are standing with a gleeful expression. These sidekicks started to follow him for benefits. They are hoping to get as many gold coins as possible from this man that they thought is a mentally ill man. Fortunately for them, Tromer is not bothered by their presence because he still needs them when he is lazy to do something minor he can just ask them to do it for him. Also, he has some questions that they might be able to answer so, they still have some value.

    Among the crowd, there are people who carried different kinds of weapons are letting out a trace of hostility towards the members of the Dowter clan.

    "Leave this place all at once! You demons!"

    "Yeah! Demons are not suitable here! Go back to hell!"

    "Purge the demons!"

    Different howls that carry a variety of negative and threatening emotions are being thrown out without stopping at the Dowter clan, especially for Julius because he''s the clan leader. They lifted up their weapons from time to time shouting something like a battle cry. Although they are displaying an antagonistic expression, they still held themselves back for they are unsure if the Dowters are really colluding with the demons. If they purged them but it turns out that they are not connected with the demons they will surely be embarrassed and many negative outcomes will happen like most people will not trust them easily and many more. They are just acting a little bit braver and bolder right now because they knew that there is a large possibility that their accusation is correct based on the recent news and happenings.Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

    In the middle, the grand priest looked at Julius coldly. "Demon''s minions! Take out the demon that you''re hiding! Or else we will use brute force. The citizens are in danger if that demon is still here, hand him over to us."

    After the grand priest said those words, a loud cheer of support has been let out by the crowd of people.

    "Yeah! Hand him over and we will beat him!"A random person who wore a farmer''s hat said while pointing his one-meter long scythe that has some dirt and grass remnants from farming.

    "We don''t have demon here, besides, how will you handle him if there is a real demon, do you think mortals can kill those powerful beings?! You are just throwing away the safety of the citizens."

    "You''re lying, we recently fought with that demon! He is named Tromer and for sure he is extraordinary! We are ready to fight that demon at all cost just to ensure the safety of the citizens. We are not putting ourselves in danger; we are fighting to take out the danger that you have there!" The grand priest said with resolution lingering on his every action. Cheers and howls spread loudly again, this kind of playing with words can easily stir the hearts of these mortals.

    "We really don''t have a demon here, but how about the church?" Julius said disdainfully with a side of his lips curling up into a smile.

    After hearing what Julius said, the Grand Priest, the normal priest and the crowds stared at the Dowters dumbfoundedly. "What? Nonsense! You''re flipping accusation towards us! We don''t have a demon, and we will never have a demon! We are serving the Almighty Galvan and no demon can resist him." The grand priest said with narrowed eyes and a cold voice.

    Another butt in of the crowd happened.

    "Nonsense!"

    "You can''t mislead us!"

    Julius just threw an observing gaze towards the other party. He''s calm and reserved because even though he doesn''t have the support of the crowds, he knows that at his back, his clan is supporting and relying on him. Moments later, he took out an old book and opened it, he stopped at a certain page after a few seconds. He then, flipped it making it visible to the eyes of the people.

    "This is the proof that your god is not a merciful god but a vile and sinister demon!" Julius said with a hint of disdain in his voice.

    "Nonsense again! Galvan is a righteous god we serve. What you''ve done is a blasphemy against him and us, his servants!" The church''s people began to let out a cold gaze and angry facial expression.

    "If I''m saying nonsense, you can cast us out in this place, but!" He stopped after saying the last word just to put emphasis on his next words. "If what we said is true and that fake god of yours is actually a demon, then you need to remove your church here in the Bigfield city and also pay us for all the troubles and inconveniences."

    "You''re too much confident and arrogant huh! I''m excited to see your clan moving out of this place like a caravan." The Grand Priest said sneeringly.

 Chapter 23: Call to Galvan

    Julius would not let his clan loose and he would do all that he could because he''s the clan leader and he has the responsibility to lead his clan to greater heights. Would he let his clan loose? especially this time that they were gaining wealth and their foundation as a higher class clan were being laid down? Of course, the only answer is no!

    As a reply to the Grand Pries''s sneers, he raised the book that was at his hands so that everyone could see it, "This is the Book of Demons. Inside, all the known demons were indicated here and surprisingly, it includes their so-called ''god'' which was Galvan. For a long time, they''ve been fooling us! They said that Galvan is a god, a righteous one, they hid us the fact that Galvan was really a fearsome demon. Now, they passed the blame to our clan stating that we were colluding with a demon! "Julius said loudly."Everybody, please take a closer look and see it for yourself." He added.

    Everybody looked at the Book of Demons that was on Julius'' hands. A few moments later, a loud voice of surprise was heard throughout the entire place of gathering.

    "Woah!" A stout man said with his eyes and jaw wide opened.

    "What happened?" His friend beside him asked.

    "Take a closer look at the emblem on the book and the emblem of the church!" The stout man said loudly and so, everyone heard it. He couldn''t help but be shocked and spoke so loudly because what he discovered is very breathtaking especially for the mortals.

    Later, another scream of surprise is heard. "The emblems were... the same?!"

    People started to get engrossed as they also copied the others in taking a closer look at the emblem on the book and the church''s emblem.

    "Woah! It is really the same!"

    "Yes, it truly is, What in the world?!"

    Fully surprised voice has popped out everywhere within the crowd simultaneously. Along with being shocked and dumbfounded, confusion also lingers on everybody''s mind. "Don''t tell me this just happened arbitrarily?" A bald man among the crowds said.

    When the people from the church detected the sudden change in the surroundings especially the building up of doubts in everyone''s hearts'' they reacted hastily as their minds are thinking of any possible counter-attack against Julius and his clan.This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

    While the normal priests are thinking, the grand priest immediately thought of something,"Nonsense! Why should we believe that book? We don''t even know where you got it! It''s clearly made-up!" He said with the skin on his face were folded especially the part on his forehead and on the sides of his eyes.

    The Fourth Elder suddenly frowned as a sudden thought ran through his mind. "Wait! I just noticed you had said ''nonsense'' a few times already, is it the only word in your vocabulary? Want me to teach you some?" He said in an asking tone while looking at the Grand Priest disdainfully as if telling that he is more intelligent than him after discovering the matter.

    The Grand Priest reacted in a questioning manner. "What''s with this guy?! That''s just a trivial thing yet; it''s a big issue for him? What the heck!" He thought."Stop spouting nonsense! This is a serious matter! This involved the future of the residents of Bigfield City!" He said aloud.

    "Nonsense again?! I think you really need to learn some words, let me help you..." He said while holding his chin as if his thoughts are going down deep into his very mind."Try to use... senselessness! Yeah, senselessness is a good substitute," He said while an accomplished look on his face was displayed. "Or you can just use some cursing words." He added.

    After that, Julius stared at the Fourth Elder implying that a command to stop was ordered. He let the Fourth Elder finish before he restraint him, it is just for one purpose, to provoke and to anger the church.

    "I know you wouldn''t believe us but I can prove it to you only if you were capable of convening the demon you called god. But you are just a Grand Priest and not a Bishop or an Archbishop so you''re not capable of doing that." He tauntingly said.

    "How dare you? I''m a Grand Priest, although I can''t do that for a normal matter it is different if the situation is like this. You''re doing a blasphemy against our god! I will only pray and surely, he will answer my call and he will judge you all for your wrongdoings!"He then looked towards the clear blue sky up above and after that, he closed his eyes.

    "Raba Raba Um Shamalaya~" Incomprehensible words are enchanted by the Grand Priest while his eyes are still closed and his face pointed at the sky.

    On a realm where darkness and heat coming from the lavas that are flowing from different locations forming canals are lingering over every being here, a mansion made of red stones was built on top of a very steep mountain with two big canals that have a huge amount of lava flowing on its sides. Inside the mansion, a human figure was sitting cross-legged. The only uncommon feature of this being was that his face is not of a human, but of a panther. He was not moving and his eyes were closed but only after a few moments of time, suddenly, the eyes of the panther-faced being opened, displaying red-dyed eyes with nerves popping out.

    "Someone is calling me." He said with a voice that sounds like it was derived from the deepest part of the world.

 Chapter 24: Hes Here

    The ground trembled and the sky began to swirl and darken. In front of the Grand Priest. a dark-red swirl of energies are starting to gather as it forms a vortex. Everyone''s eyes are widened even the people of the church are trembling as they start to bow down with their heads touching the ground. The Dowter clan also felt the same as any other people from the surrounding. Up above a higher platform not too far away from the scene, Tromer''s little fellas, stepped back a few paces, their mouths are wide open and a variety of emotions are displayed on their faces. On the other hand, Tromer''s face displayed a frowning gaze upon the dark-red vortex, "hmmm" he was thinking. A few moment later, the frown was gone and his lips curled up on the right part of his face.

    Julius has done the same thing as others, he stepped-back a few pace while his wide eyes are gazing on the scene playing in front of him, he never knew that something like this would happen, he just wanted to tease and provoke the church so that the people will be doubtful of them, and also he didn''t knew that there is an extraordinary thing like this. When Tromer said that Galvan is a demon, at first he never believe that something like that really exist, he just tried this out for his purpose of making people be doubtful to the church.

    As the vortex is expanding and expanding, so was the eyes of the people around. Several moments later, a shadow of a figure can be seen through the vortex. It is a human figure about 6 feet tall and even though it was just a shadow, you can tell that it''s body is made-up of very bulky muscles, walking few paces out of the vortex, it''s eyes flashed with bright red light, this striked fear to the normal humans around. Not too long, a foot emerged, it was of a human, but it''s skin was a bit tanned and as soon as it stepped the ground, it made a small crater beloe it''s feet as though a heavy object suddenly dropped on it, but not, it also made slight trembles to the ground.This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there.

    Looking at the humans, you can clearly see signs of panic as their feets are trembling uncontrollably, and their bodies are weaking and some even peed their pants and others are now unconscious. This magnifying scene is new for them, they didn''t even believe that something like this may happen in reality and be played out in front of them.

    Now, the body of this monster is slowly emerging out of the dark red vortex. It''s body was large and it''s build are like stones that was put out together. Next, the other foot also stepped out and it also made same things as what the other foot have done. Clearly, this being has the power and strength that must be praised and looked up by the lowly humans here.

    After a few moments, this being was completely visible to the naked eye. Aside from it''s bulky build the most notable feature of him was his panther face. A sinister dark aura is looming around him, and it gives off the vibes of something vile and death.

    After they saw this being, the church immediately called out, "Almighty Galvan!" The demon Galvan, their so called ''god'' is now here. Then, Galvan looked unto them, his eyes sharpened as he looked at the Grand Priests, the grand priests looked unto him and then their eyes met, instantly, the grand priests stood up, Galvan looked at his eyes and with a deep voice he said "so that''s the case," he then turned his gaze at Julius and after he took of his look at the grand priest, the old man nearly collapsed but still a little bit conscious, a clear sign of weaking was seen from the old grand priest.

    Julius at the same time was struggling to himself, when the gaze was targeted at him, he felt a cold chill has run down his spine, his whole body is now trembling uncontrollably out of fear.

    Then, after a few seconds Galvan''s gaze waa thrown to a person on top of a higher platform few meters away from the scene. Tromer and Galvan''s gaze met, but Tromer didn''t even make signs of fear or whatnot, just a straight stoic face.

    "A cultivator." Galvan said not too loud but it can be heard clearly even with his deep voice

    "A petty demon." Tromer said with an unworried face.

    A demon and a cultivator has just met in a world of mortals.

 Chapter 25: Regret

    The eyes of these two extraordinary beings in the Mortal World has just met but between the two of them Galvan has a slightly different expression, why? because it is the first time he saw a cultivator in this world of mortals! All he knew was that this world is a huge source of power from believers because all of the people here are mere mortals. His face was full of disbelief as he frowned upon stumbling upon this guy, he saw a few auras of spiritual energy emitted by him. Thinking about it, that level of spiritual energy is close to second level of Spiritual Realm in which although is not that powerful enough he is still shocked as to how come he became a cultivator and even reach the second level of the first realm.

    On the other side, Tromer didn''t even trembled, and why would he do so? Galvan is not even powerful, he is just a speck of dust in his view. His plain straight face was a little bit disturbing for Galvan, of all people here Tromer is the only one who didn''t even displayed even the tiniest bit of fear or shock. "Maybe he''s too full of himself because of his cultivation." Galvan thought. Even his magnificent arrival here did not moved this guy.

    All people on the scene are flabbergasted including the people of the church. The Grand Priest although he has a hard time standing up and composing himself because of whatever technique Galvan used to know the situation still, he stood up with the help of other priest. When he finally stood straight, he called out the name of his god, "Almighty Galvan!" hearing a call, Galvan looked the other way around towards the Grand Priest. "These people are subject to blasphemy, they are accusing you of being a demon! They even forge a fake book that list out the names of demons and they put your name on it! Almighty Galvan please do your judgement and punish these guys accordingly." Galvan looked at Julius and then he saw a book, it is the Book of Demons. As soon as his eyes saw the book, it reminded him of cultivators. The Book of Demons are from the world where cultivation exist. "Where did you found that?!" Galvan asked with a bit of panic and shock but still his voice is calm. Suddenly, he heard a manly voice from behind saying "I gave that to him, is there a problem?" he looked from the source of the voice only to see Tromer a few meters away from him. Tromer''s lackeys are dumbfounded, their master is just with them a little while ago but right now he was in front of that panther faced being that the church is worshipping.

    If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

    Galvan got shocked, that instant travel from the high platform going behind him is not a feat that a second level of Spiritual Realm can do. It takes training and higher cultivation to do that. Doubtful frowning eyes started to be focused on Tromer coming from the demon.

    "Who are you?" Galvan immediately asked with a bit of panicked voice. Tromer looked at him with a grin, a smile that looks like a simple smile but the truth is that it hides a dragon smiling over an ant. "Calm down brother." Tromer said. Galvan''s eyes has frowned even more to the point that his eyes are only about 5 millimeter opened. "Brother? what''s with this guy? he act rudely and even called me brother, I didn''t even know him!" Galvan thought to himself but then he simply said, "Answer my question." in the manner of an order.

    Tromer just laugh "Very truly I tell you, you wouldn''t want to know me, but since you persist..." He closed his eyes for a few moments. Galvan never expected this man to say those things, it was rude but he has a bad feeling now. Looking at Tromer after he closed his eyes, Galvan''s uneasy feeling become even more intense until he saw Tromer''s eyes open and with that his jaw followed as it also opened widely enough. His eyes cannot believe what he was seeing. "Wait, What!?" He asked with a very panicked voice "That guy..."

    Going back to Tromer right now, nothing''s really change from the eyes of the mortals but not for this demon, what he saw is that, Tromer is standing normally but with a towering aura of powerful colorful energies lingering on him as if he was a god descended from heaven above.

    Galvan only thought of one thing...

    regret.