Chapter 1045 Discovery in the Depths of the Abyss
Although Dawnchaser, Goldenstride, and Goldblazer hadn't expected it, they didn't find it surprising either. They had been Peak Paragons for so long.
With only one step away from the Divine Beast Realm, it was only a matter of time.
"Thank you, my Lord. If not for you, we may have never been able to reach the Divine Beast Realm in our lifetime," Dawnchaser said sincerely.
Even after becoming Divine Beasts and surpassing Leon's present strength, Dawnchaser, Goldenstride, and Goldblazer remained subservient to him.
They weren't ungrateful, nor were they stupid.
Nevertheless, Leon didn't quite agree with Dawnchaser's words as he said, "Perhaps, but that is only if you stay within the western jungle your whole life."
"You were all Peak Paragons with just a single step away from reaching the Divine Beast Realm. Even if you hadn't met me, some of you might have ascended eventually—if any of you had gone out to look for opportunities."
"You could wait a whole lifetime without coming across a single opportunity. If you want to advance very far in life or seek changes in your life, you must actively search for opportunities and not just wait for them."
"After all, opportunities won't wait for anyone," Leon stated.
"I understand your point, my Lord. I really do," Dawnchaser agreed with a nod before adding, "However, you should also understand our situation, my Lord."
"We have the sea to our east, the cold mountains to our north, the desolate land to our west, and the demon land to our south. There isn't anywhere for us to go."
"That is only an excuse you tell yourself," Leon said coolly.
"Naturally, the path ahead is not always smooth-sailing and may even be filled with hardship. But if you want changes, whether it is for yourself or your whole clan, you have to press forward regardless to find that chance."
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"You have to actively search for opportunities if you want changes. If you don't even try, nothing will happen." Leon stated.
He regretted many things in his past life because he was too passive. Only after he was given a second chance at life did he try to change that.
Nevertheless, Leon expected he would need to lecture beings several thousand years older than him on such a topic. Even so, age doesn't really matter when it comes to such matters.
More often than not, people don't realize what's important to them until they are lost.
"It was your fortune that you met me. However, I can't always be the source of your changes. Do you understand what I am saying? You can't obtain the best things in life if you always rely on others. You have to rely on yourself as well," Leon added.
He could give them opportunities. But sometimes, the opportunities he gives may not be enough.
If there was one thing Leon learned after spending his time with the Golden Suanni Clan in the past few days, it was that they were very lazy and comfortable with their present situation.
If he doesn't incite them, most of them may never leave the confines of the western jungle.
That might be fine for the ordinary clan members with ordinary potential.
However, Leon wants to bring the strongest of the clan with him when he leaves for the stars and wages war on the villainous Divine Kings of the Divine Realm.
After Leon spoke, Dawnchaser and the other Golden Suannis fell silent as they took in his words.
"Anyway, that's for all of you to ponder in your own time. Now that we have quite a few members who have awakened their bloodline abilities, it is time to clean up the abyss," Leon declared.
It was also time for him to uncover the remaining secrets within the abyss.
"Understood, my Lord," Dawnchaser complied with a nod and said, "I will gather everyone at the entrance and wait for you, my Lord."
"No need to wait for me. As soon as you reach the entrance, you can start sweeping the mutant plant hives in the abyss right away," Leon stated.
In the past few days, only Cindertail and Nightingale were doing all the work.
2023年の世界で最も売れた自動車トップ20のうち,半数が日本車で,1位の車種は64%の成長を達成しました.TOPSSEEK
But now that there were more Golden Suannis with the ability to summon the True Samadhi Golden Flames, the clean-up process should be sped forward by quite a bit.
Sometime later, Leon entered the abyss with Rainshine on his shoulder and descended to the bottom, where the space debris was located.
However, he didn't stop there.
He found a gap in the tree roots and vines beneath it and made his way further down into the abyss.
Most of the tree roots and vines were corrupted by Wrathful Demon Energy, but Leon ignored them all. They would be left for the others to clean up.
As Leon continued venturing deeper down the abyss, he found out the sea of tree roots and vines below the space debris was thicker and more extensive than he anticipated.
It went below the range that was initially covered by his divine sense.
The cluster of tree roots and vines continued for several thousand feet. And as Leon descended deeper and deeper, he left the region of corrupted tree roots and vines and entered a region where the wood energy was dense beyond belief.
If his guesses weren't wrong, there was most likely a Celestial Wood Spark hidden in the core region of these tree roots and vines.
"Strange… how did these space debris make it all the way down here?" Leon wondered.
Along the way, Leon found smaller pieces of space debris, which in itself was rather strange considering they shouldn't have been able to make it past such a thick wall of tree roots and vines.
It was as if the smaller pieces of space debris had been purposely moved to the deeper parts of the abyss.
Although Leon found it strange, he only briefly studied them with his divine sense before moving on—until he found another space debris that caught his attention.
He immediately made his way through the tree roots and vines to reach it.
Thanks to his Wood Law, Leon didn't need to force his way through. He simply moved the tree roots and vines with his wood ability.
"This is… a Tier-6 Teleportation Array?" Leon was astonished by the discovery.
Chapter 1046 Heart of the Jungle
Leon didn't expect to find a Tier-6 Teleportation Array deep in the abyss. But then again, he did know what to expect from the abyss besides a Celestial Wood Spark, which he had yet to confirm.
Nevertheless, the Tier-6 Teleportation Array was damaged.
Parts of it were missing. Even so, it was mostly whole enough for Leon to recognize it as a Tier-6 Teleportation Array.
If he could advance his runic knowledge to tier 6, he reckoned he could patch up the missing pieces like putting in the last pieces of a jigsaw puzzle.
"But why is this Tier-6 Teleportation Array here? And where does it lead?" Leon mumbled to himself.
Although Rainshine overheard his questions, she knew that the questions weren't meant for her.
Even if they were, she wasn't knowledgeable enough in runes to answer. As such, she kept silent and did not distract her master's thoughts.
Leon carefully studied the damaged Tier-6 Teleportation Array on the space debris and scanned its interior with his divine sense.
Most of the runic circles and lines engraved in the Tier-6 Teleportation Array were still too complex for him to understand.
However, he still had sufficient knowledge as a Tier-5 Runemaster to understand some parts of the Tier-6 Teleportation Array. Even so, it still took him five dozen breaths to pinpoint the spatial coordinates and figure out where the array set its destination.
"These spatial coordinates… lead straight to where the debris ring is," Leon furrowed his brows for a moment before muttering with understanding, "Makes sense…"
Although Leon wasn't exactly sure what it was used for, he knew that the debris ring orbiting Gaia was a megastructure built by the Nova Civilization. It was an orbital ring of sorts.
Many people might have lived on that massive orbital ring.
2023年の世界で最も売れた自動車トップ20のうち,半数が日本車で,1位の車種は64%の成長を達成しました.TOPSSEEK
And given such an enormous megastructure completely looped around a giant planet like Gaia, the distance it covered was enormous.
It made sense for the Nova Civilization to build numerous Teleportation Arrays to enable their people to quickly travel to different sections of the orbital ring megastructure.
'Transfer points!' Leon's eyes brightened suddenly.
If the orbital ring had Tier-6 Teleportation Arrays for intercontinental travel, there was a chance that there may be other teleportation arrays for interplanetary and interstellar travel as well.
'If I can find one of those interplanetary transfer points, it might be possible to leave Gaia—No! It won't work. Even if there's an interplanetary transfer point, it won't be able to get past the spatial lock,' Leon suddenly thought.
Great Void Celestial Conqueror had sealed the entire planet in a powerful spatial lock.
Trying to get past such a powerful spatial lock by relying on teleportation arrays that make use of spatial power is the same as asking for death.
'Even if the interplanetary and interstellar transfer points are still working, using any of them might just send me into the strongest part of the spatial seal. My body would be torn to shreds when that happens,' Leon mused with a serious look.
Nevertheless, Leon was no expert in Spatial Law. Darlene would know more about it than him. He should seek her advice when he could.
Perhaps Darlene might be able to come up with a method to bypass Great Void Celestial Conqueror's spatial seal.
Alas, Leon did not bring Darlene with him. As such, he could only ask her later when he returns to the Human Domain.
After recording a copy of the damaged Tier-6 Teleportation Array in the Archive, Leon left the damaged Tier-6 Teleportation Array where he found it and continued to venture deeper into the abyss.
With his wood ability, the tree roots and vines slowly parted as he willed them so.
As he drew closer to the densest region of wood energy, Leon's divine sense picked up a green orb that was oozing with seemingly limitless wood energy.
Nevertheless, he continued to approach the green orb's location until he personally saw it with his own eyes.
"As I suspected, there really was a Celestial Wood Spark here," Leon's eyes brightened as he glanced at the Celestial Wood Spark with countless thin roots attached to it.
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It was undoubtedly the heart of the jungle.
"You were searching for this thing, Master?" Rainshine asked as she glanced at the Celestial Wood Spark curiously.
However, Leon surprisingly shook his head.
He had no intention of taking the Celestial Wood Spark. If the western jungle loses the Celestial Wood Spark, it will cease to exist. And the consequences that follow after that would generate bad karma.
"No, I only came to confirm the Celestial Wood Spark's existence in this place. I am looking for something else; two other things, in fact."
"What things exactly, Master?"
"The first matter is to find out where all the spirit energy of the plants went, and the second matter is to learn the history behind this abyss."
Given that the plants could grow and thrive without sunlight purely due to the Celestial Wood Spark, Leon wouldn't be surprised if the plants don't produce any spirit energy.
However, the fact the plants did produce some spirit energy—only for them to be stripped away made the abyss all the more mysterious and interesting to explore.
"Is that something possible to find out simply by exploring the abyss?" Rainshine asked.
"I don't know," Leon casually shook his head before saying, "But if we don't even look, we can't expect to find answers, now can we?"
"That… makes a lot of sense, Master," Rainshine replied thoughtfully.
Such a deep hole like the abyss couldn't have existed without reason; there must be some history to it.
As Leon continued to descend down the abyss with Rainshine, they eventually made it through the sea of tree roots and vines. They were finally free of obstacles.
It was just a straight plunge of empty space from there onwards.
"Just how far does this abyss extend? It wouldn't extend all the way to the core, would it?" Leon wondered.
As Leon had that thought, he decided to fly over to the rocky walls and connect his consciousness to the earth to save time in his investigation.
A short while later, a peculiar expression appeared on his face.
Chapter 1047 Lower Abyss Domain
"Interesting… How very interesting… To think there are many tribes thriving down here… So this is where the spirit energy goes," Leon uttered thoughtfully.
If the region of tree roots and vines around the Celestial Wood Spark was considered the middle abyss domain, then they were currently in the lower abyss domain.
The situation in the lower abyss domain was quite different from the upper abyss domain.
There were bountiful amounts of plants, water, and life in the lower abyss domain.
Ignoring the western jungle, the lower abyss domain could be said to be more flourishing than the rest of the Dark Abyss Continent.
"What did you find out, Master?" Rainshine asked curiously.
"There are several races that live down here. It's not just a world of insects. Furthermore, these races are quite specialized in their crafts," Leon stated.
After connecting his consciousness to the earth, Leon also found out that although the abyss didn't reach the core, it extended down to the mantle layer.
Furthermore, the subterranean world was home to some powerful insect races at this depth in the abyss.
Besides ants, Leon also found centipedes, worms, beetles, and spiders among the other myriads of insect races in the subterranean world.
However, these insects listed left the most impression on him due to their sheer size. They were enormous. And with such sizes usually comes with matching strength.
And among the listed insects, the ants appeared to be the most prominent. Perhaps, the whole abyss was just one big ant hole.
Nevertheless, Leon didn't doubt that these incredibly giant insects that reach the size of six-story buildings and possibly bigger were all Paragons.
Despite that, the dark elves and dwarven races still managed to thrive down here.
"Is it really possible for people to live down here, Master?" Rainshine frowned with doubt.
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Forget whether it was possible to live in the abyss. Who would want to live in such a dark and gloomy place anyway?
"Of course, it is possible," Leon asserted.
"Have you forgotten all about the plants we passed? The Celestial Wood Spark allows plants to thrive, even in a lightless world like this, and provides air for everyone to breathe. There is also plenty of food and water down here."
Nevertheless, the overabundance of air, food, and water only allowed the dark elves and dwarves to live in the abyss.
What allowed them to survive against the hordes of powerful insects was their mastery of runes and formations, which relied on the spirit energy they extracted from all the plants.
"Let's go and meet the dark elves first. Hopefully, they are friendly and capable of communication," Leon added.
In the present abyss region, there were numerous cave entrances much bigger than the ones found near the surface. In fact, they were multiple times bigger—big enough for the Paragon-level ants to pass through.
Roughly six thousand feet deeper from their present location was one of many such cave entrances. However, this one was sealed off by a smooth metal gate filled with runic engravings.
Despite the complete darkness in the abyss, the metal gate had a soft silver shine and slightly illuminated the area.
One of the dark elves' settlements lies on the other side of the silver gate.
Just as Leon descended on the platform ground before the silver gate and stepped into the light, a rumbling sound was suddenly heard from another cave entrance seven hundred feet away.
It was the rapid movements of a giant ant.
"It seems like our presence has already attracted some attention," Leon casually commented as a Paragon-level Black Ant rushed out of the cave entrance—or rather, it was an ant tunnel.
After the first Paragon-level Black Ant came out, a second one appeared, then a third, a fourth, and a fifth.
The Paragon-level Black Ant didn't come alone. It came in a squad of five.
However, the other four black ants were noticeably smaller and weaker. Evidently, the Paragon-level Black Ant was the squad leader.
Moments later, the black ants locked onto Leon and Rainshine as if they were looking at food. At the same time, Leon stared back at them as if he was looking at quality materials.
Their carapaces would make great armor and weapons.
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Shortly after the Paragon-level Black Ant made crackling sounds to signal its squad members to attack, the whole squad charged right after.
"Hmph!" Rainshine snorted.
"Leave them to me, Master. There's no need for Master to personally make a move against these insects. I alone am enough!"
After throwing out those words, Rainshine hopped off Leon's shoulder and dashed towards the black ant squad crawling along the rocky wall towards them.
"Be careful not to lose your footing," Leon warned.
The ground platform was not small, but the space was still limited. If Rainshine loses her footing or is even flung off by the black ants, it would be a straight plunge down the deep abyss for her.
Within moments, Rainshine clashed with the squad of black ants.
Screech!
A high-pitch screech sounded as Rainshine swiped at the Paragon-level Black Ant in front with her sharp claws.
However, contrary to Rainshine's expectation, she failed to tear the Paragon-level Black Ant's hard head apart and only left a long white scratch on it.
The sight immediately startled her.
At the same time, the Paragon-level Black Ant counterattacked, snapping back at Rainshine with its giant mandibles.
Snap!
The Paragon-level Black Ant snapped at the empty air as Rainshine evaded its attack.
Although she was caught off guard by the Paragon-level Black Ant's defense, her nimbleness allowed her to easily escape the clutches of the Paragon-level Black Ant's giant mandibles.
Nevertheless, the other four Rank 2 Transcendent-level Black Ants quickly followed up, forcing Rainshine to retreat back to the ground platform.
At the same time, Leon's eyes beamed.
He was well aware of the Winter Cat's sharp fangs and claws. And yet, the Paragon-level Black Ant's carapace was strong enough to withstand it.
Its defense was certainly impressive and all the more desirable.
Chapter 1048 Meeting the Dark Elves
"Do you need help?" Leon casually asked.
"No, Master! I can take care of them!" Rainshine shook her head and firmly said, "I was careless because I underestimated their defense. However, there won't be a second time!"
Having received multiple bloodline enrichment, Rainshine was still a Late Paragon-level Winter Cat. The sharpness of her fangs and claws may not have been effective against the Early Paragon-level Black Ant, but her brute strength was more than enough!
Rainshine briefly glared at the incoming black ants before her figure disappeared in a white flash.
Swoosh!
She left behind a gust of wind as she closed the distance on the black ants, circling around to their rear and targeting the weaker Rank 2 Transcendent-level Black Ants first.
Rainshine raised her paw high above a Rank 2 Transcendent-level Black Ant's head before slapping down on it furiously.
Reow!
Bam!
The Rank 2 Transcendent-level Black Ant's hard-shelled head shattered inward under the heavy impact. At the same time, its brain was crushed, killing it on the spot.
Swish!
Rainshine dashed over to her next target and bashed its head in with another powerful strike of her paw packed with brute strength.
Smack! Smack! Smack!
In a short instance, Rainshine busted the heads of all four Rank 2 Transcendent-level Black Ants, leaving just the Early Paragon-level Black Ant left.
Crackled!
The Early Paragon-level Black Ant was evidently enraged by its loss as its mandibles clanked together furiously, creating waves of echoing vibrations.
In the next moment, it threw itself at Rainshine and landed on the ground platform with a heavy thud.
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The ground shook considerably but otherwise remained intact; it was surprisingly sturdy.
A quick sweep with Leon's divine sense allowed him to understand that the ground platform's interior had been reinforced with tree roots, vines, and even special alloys.
It was most likely the work of the dark elves.
Nevertheless, Rainshine and the Early Paragon-level Black Ant duked it out on the ground platform that Leon stood on.
The Early Paragon-level Black Ant wasn't just big and sturdy; it was also fast. Even so, its speed was still inferior to the nimble Rainshine.
Rainshine evaded all of the Early Paragon-level Black Ant's snapping mandibles and razor-sharp legs as she threw concussive blows back at it with increasing frequency and momentum.
She suppressed the Early Paragon-level Black Ant with her barrage of heavy attacks, pushing it back to the edge of the ground platform.
Then, she finished it off with a powerful body slam, knocking the Early Paragon-level Black Ant over the edge as she bounced back onto the solid ground.
On the other hand, the Early Paragon-level Black Ant took the plunge down the abyss.
Its distinct crackling cry grew distant over time.
If nothing unexpected happened, the Early Paragon-level Black Ant would plunge all the down into the scorching-hot magma of the mantle layer.
However, the trouble didn't end there.
Rumble…!
Multiple ant tunnels along the surrounding walls shook under the rapid movements of many legs. Based on the noise, the number of black ants coming was estimated to be in the several hundreds.
Evidently, the previous Early Paragon-level Black Ant had called them all over with its clanging mandible.
"Looks like a bigger battle is coming," Leon casually said.
"Try not to push them into the abyss this time, Rainshine. Their bodies are practically made of excellent materials and should be collected."
"Understood, Master," Rainshine answered.
Leon did not feel any pressure from the attraction they created. In fact, he welcomed it. The more black ants that came, the more materials he could collect.
Alas, not everyone shared his thoughts. The dark elves did not welcome the trouble at the door.
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Clank…!
The sounds of metal gears turning and hitting each other were heard before the big, heavy silver gate slowly crept open.
"Quickly, come in!" A male dark elf urgently signaled them over.
"Let's go, Rainshine. The dark elves are inviting us into their settlement," Leon casually recalled Rainshine from the edge of the ground platform.
Although Leon wasn't afraid of the incoming black ants, he didn't plan on turning down the dark elves' invitation, regardless of their intention.
It was a chance to enter their settlement and interact with them.
Shortly after Leon and Rainshine dashed through the gate, the dark elves behind the silver gate quickly worked together to close it.
Bang!
The silver gate shut tight with a heavy thud.
Afterward, Leon and Rainshine were quickly greeted with a 'warm' welcome from the dark elves. Rows of dark elven soldiers decked in tier-5 sets of armor surrounded them, spears pointed, and bows drawn.
"Well, this is quite the welcoming," Leon casually commented as he swept his calm gaze across the dark elves' nervous faces. Although they permitted his entry, they didn't trust him.
Rainshine glared at the dark elves defensively, but Leon wasn't concerned.
Although the dark elves were equipped with high-quality equipment and weapons, their personal strength wasn't as high.
The strongest dark elf present was only a Peak Rank 2 Transcendent, while the rest were primarily Mid Rank 1 Transcendents.
"Who are you? And why have you come to our clan?" the Peak Rank Transcendent-level Dark Elf interrogated while paying attention to the white winter cat beside Leon with apprehension.
After all, Rainshine was able to solo a Paragon-level Black Ant.
Nevertheless, Leon could see that the dark elves did not let them in blindly. The second wall in the back was equipped with eight tier-6 siege weapons. And these eight tier-6 siege weapons were precisely aimed at them.
However, the dark elves had sorely miscalculated if they thought tier-6 siege weapons were enough to deter him.
Leon smiled with an open mind.
The dark elves were just taking precautions to determine whether he could be a friend or foe. There was no need to feel offended and sour the relationship during their first meeting.
"As you can see, I am a human. And Rainshine here is one of my subordinates. We both came from the surface and explored the abyss out of curiosity when we came across your clan," Leon calmly stated.
After all, the silver gate stood out like a sore thumb in the dark abyss.
Chapter 1049 Fairy Messenger
'The surface!'
When the dark elves heard Leon's claim, they immediately revealed surprise and astonishment on their faces.
However, it only lasted a moment before they were filled with doubts and suspicions.
"Impossible. How can there still be living people on the surface?" the Peak Rank 2 Transcendent-level Dark Elf denied Leon's claim.
Nevertheless, Leon didn't find it surprising.
The dark elves' doubts were exactly the same as Elder Evergreen and his people when Leon first met them and told them about the surface.
However, the dark elves were even more reclused than Elder Evergreen's village.
The dark elves practically lived in a different world; any mentions of the surface in their clan were pretty much non-existent.
None of them had seen the surface, and very few had even heard of it.
Although the Peak Rank 2 Transcendent and the other dark elves doubted Leon's claim, they didn't feel like he was lying, nor did they sense any falsehood in his words.
The person seemed to be telling the truth, but how does that even make sense?
"You're really from the surface? How can you prove it?" the Peak Rank 2 Transcendent-level Dark Elf asked.
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"How to prove it, huh?" Leon smiled amusedly before saying, "Well then, let me ask you this; when was the last time you've seen a human and a winter cat?"
"Our clan hasn't seen or heard of any human in several thousand years. As for the… adorable winter cat called Rainshine beside you, we have no records of such a creature," the Peak Rank 2 Transcendent-level Dark Elf replied before suddenly adding, "However, that doesn't prove anything."
"It doesn't?" Leon raised an eyebrow with growing interest.
"Of course not!" the Peak Rank 2 Transcendent-level Dark Elf firmly said.
"The abyss domain is a boundless world. We, who live in the abyss, have yet to explore all of it due to the dangers. Even so, we are at least aware that other many other races live in the abyss domain, even if we have no contact with them."
"As such, just because humans and winter cats are unfamiliar around here, it doesn't prove that you two are from the surface; you two could have come from another sector," the Peak Rank 2 Transcendent-level Dark Elf stated.
In another word, the dark elf admitted that they were ignorant. However, the dark elf wouldn't blindly believe in Leon's words because of it.
"I see. You made a reasonable point," Leon nodded with acknowledgment before saying, "Let's just say that where I came from isn't important. What's important is why I am here."
"That's right. Why did you come to our clan?" the Peak Rank 2 Transcendent-level Dark Elf asked after nodding.
The dark elves were all curious whether Leon truly came from the surface or not. However, since it couldn't be proven, they didn't want to waste time dwelling on it.
At the same time, even though Leon could prove it, he also didn't want to waste time doing so.
It was as he said; it was not important—at least, not at this point in time.
"I came for two reasons. First, I wish to establish a friendly relationship and trade with your clan. It would be beneficial to both of us. And second, I wish to learn about your clan's history in the abyss domain," Leon stated.
"You want to learn about our history living in the abyss…?" the Peak Rank 2 Transcendent-level Dark Elf slightly smiled and said, "You do sound more and more like someone from the surface."
"That is because I am," Leon calmly asserted with confidence.
The Peak Rank 2 Transcendent-level Dark Elf quietly smiled without commenting on Leon's claim before asking, "Since you want to trade with us, what do you wish to trade?"
"Before that, I want to ask if you have enough authority to make such important decisions on behalf of your clan?" Leon calmly asked.
"I don't!" the Peak Rank 2 Transcendent-level Dark Elf furrowed his brows and said, "Only our clan leader or his representative can make decisions on behalf of the clan."
"If you want to meet our clan leader, I can take you to see him. But considering we can't trust you yet, you must agree to wear these tier-5 shackles before I can take you to meet the clan leader."
"Since you wish to build a friendly relationship with our clan, you will agree to this, won't you?" the Peak Rank 2 Transcendent-level Dark Elf asked.
Leon frowned while looking at the tier-5 silver shackles in the dark elf's hand. Even Paragons would have trouble breaking free from it.
"You want to shackle someone who came to build a friendly relationship with your clan? Isn't that the same as spitting on my good intention?" Leon asked coolly.
"Please don't be offended. We are just taking precautions to guarantee our people's safety," the Peak Rank 2 Transcendent-level Dark Elf stated before adding, "And to build a friendly relationship, we have to build trust first, no?"
"That is true," Leon calmly nodded before adding, "However, I believe a healthy relationship requires mutual trust. Besides that, do you dare to put those shackles on me?"
As Leon asked that question, he revealed a portion of his Peak Paragon-level aura.
In that instant, the expressions of every dark elf in the area changed immediately upon sensing Leon's mighty aura.
None of them expected Leon to be so powerful.
The Peak Rank 2 Transcendent-level Dark Elf quickly felt sweaty from nervousness and did not know what to do.
While the Peak Rank 2 Transcendent-level Dark Elf was caught in a dilemma, a tiny fairy with glittering green light arrived.
"Captain Dhithres, I've come to deliver the clan leader's instructions. The human and winter cat are to be escorted to him. Furthermore, they must be treated with utmost respect along the way," the green fairy stated.
"I hear and obey, FairySorrell," Captain Dhithres answered respectfully while feeling relieved in his heart. Fairy Sorrell's arrival was timely.
Meanwhile, Leon silently studied the tiny fairy with interest.
Chapter 1050 Lord Rhuvek
Past the silver gates wasn't a world of complete darkness like the deep abyss. The entire space was fully illuminated by soft green spots floating around.
Leon wasn't surprised when the tiny fairy called Fairy Sorrell appeared.
However, he was surprised to see that the dark elves shared a close relationship with the fairy race in the abyss. After all, the fairy race was usually intimate with the wood elves, not the dark elves.
But then again, the dark elves weren't like the dark elves he knew.
The dark elves certainly look like dark elves, and they also live underground. However, the underground they lived in was not one that was full of dirt and rocks. Instead, it was full of plants and refined metal.
The city just beyond the wall was quite similar to how New Capital was shaping out to be.
There was plenty of air, food, and water for the dark elves to live comfortably. In fact, the current dark elf clan's city was comparable to a giant oasis in an unforgiving desert.
Nevertheless, it would have been a bleak and gloomy place without the fairies, fireflies, and glowing moss lighting up the subterranean world.
Shortly after Fairy Sorrell delivered the clan leader's message, she frowned at the dark elves' slow responses.
"What are you all doing? Did you not hear what I just said? The clan leader instructed everyone to treat our two guests with the utmost respect!" Fairy Sorrell scowled.
The little fairy looked quite cute when she threw a tantrum, but none of the dark elves dared to dismiss her words.
She was the clan leader's favorite, not to mention the two guests were revered Paragons.
"Y-yes, Fairy Sorrell!" the dark elven soldiers responded.
Shortly after, the dark elven soldiers quickly retracted the spears and arrows directed at Leon and Rainshine. Even the tier-6 siege weapons on the wall at the back were reset to their original target, the silver gate.
2023年の世界で最も売れた自動車トップ20のうち,半数が日本車で,1位の車種は64%の成長を達成しました.TOPSSEEK
Fairy Sorrell flapped her tiny wings and approached Leon a few moments later.
"Please excuse our Captain Dhithres and his soldiers' insolence, Your Excellencies. They are just following standard protocol. If you would, please follow me; I will guide you to our clan leader's location," Fairy Sorrell spoke.
"Alright," Leon calmly nodded.
Shortly after, Leon followed Fairy Sorrell's lead and made their way past the silver wall before the dark elven city behind it was revealed to him.
Leon had already seen everything with his divine sense, but Rainshine, on the other hand, was amazed by the beautiful city, which was born from a fusion of technology and nature.
It was a city of metal covered in plants.
And the flickering and glittering lights of red, yellow, and green coming from the fairies, glowing moss, and fireflies gave it a surreal yet otherworldly feeling.
It was truly an impressive sight.
"This is such a beautiful city, Master," Rainshine commented with awe before wondering, "Would New Capital become like this one day?"
"Maybe," Leon casually answered.
Rainshine could see the similarities between New Capital and the dark elf clan's city. New Capital was only lacking the night lights.
Meanwhile, Fairy Sorrell overheard Rainshine's comment and felt proud.
Fifteen minutes later, Leon and Rainshine arrived in the heart of the city, where a thirty-floor pyramid-shaped palace stood tall and connected to the giant tree roots that came spiraling down from the cave ceiling.
Leon narrowed his eyes with scrutiny when he vaguely felt the working of a large formation hidden within the sea of tree roots that completely covered the surface of the ceiling.
Particles of bluish-green light dripped down from the end tips of the tree roots like water drops, but they were lighter than feathers. In fact, they were weightless.
Those particles were wisps of spirit energy.
At the entrance of the elven palace, two rows of dark elven guards lined up on either side of the path respectfully as they welcomed Fairy Sorrell's return with the two honored guests.
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Leon didn't think much of them and entered the palace under Fairy Sorrell's lead.
After passing through a few corridors and taking a few flights of stairs, Leon entered a grand hall filled with lavish decorations of exotic spirit plants, crystal sculptures, and armored statues.
At the end of the grand hall, the dark elven clan leader sat on his throne like a king, emanating the aura of a Mid Paragon.
"Clan Leader, I have brought the guests."
"Un. Thank you, Sorrell."
Shortly after Fairy Sorrell informed, the dark elf clan leader acknowledged with a nod before standing up from his throne to personally greet the guests with proper respects.
"Welcome to my city, friends from the surface. I am the clan leader of the Dark Elf Clan's seventh branch, as well as this city's lord, Rhuvek," the dark elf clan leader introduced himself before saying, "I heard you have business with my city?"
"I do," Leon calmly asserted.
Along the way, he had come across many dark elves.
However, most of them weren't even Transcendents. As such, a Mid Paragon among the dark elves was quite impressive.
Even so, Rhuvek's strength still paled to Rainshine.
Nevertheless, he didn't find it surprising that Rhuvek had already learned every detail of his conversation at the silver gate, given the number of fairies flying around the city.
It was easy for them to pass information to Rhuvek.
"Since Lord Rhuvek already knows what happened at the gate, I will skip the introductions. Lord Rhuvek should have already learned the purpose of my visit as well," Leon said.
"Un, the fairies informed me," Lord Rhuvek calmly admitted.
"I still find it incredibly hard to believe, but there's no reason for a Peak Paragon to lie. Given your great strength, Lord Leon could easily demolish this city if you wanted to."
"Please take a seat, Lord Leon. I believe we have much to learn from each other," Lord Rhuvek politely gestured to the seats on the side.
Then, Lord Rhuvek waited for Leon to choose his seat before sitting back down on his throne. He didn't dare to sit before a Peak Paragon did.
Chapter 1051 Hidden Guardian
Shortly after Lord Rhuvek sat down, he clapped his hands together and summoned a servant to bring forward some drinks to serve their honored guests.
Nevertheless, it only took a few breaths before Leon found two cups of green-colored wine placed beside him as the wine was prepared beforehand.
"Elvish fruit wine, one of our city's finest; please have a taste, Lord Leon. You too, Lord Rainshine," Lord Rhuvek kindly gestured with his cup of wine.
Leon took a quick whiff of the pleasant scent and discerned all the ingredients mixed within the elvish fruit wine before he took a sip and savored the taste.
It had the sweetness of honey, the sourness of apples, and the bitterness of alcohol. However, the conflicting flavors were well balanced, creating harmony and a unique savoriness.
Nevertheless, Leon's attention lay in the potent energy contained within the elvish fruit wine, which flowed into his system and invigorated his body.
The elvish fruit wine was comparable to tier-3 spirit food.
After Rainshine understood her master had determined the elvish fruit wine was safe to drink, she hopped onto the adjacent empty seat and sipped hers.
Her eyes brightened before she downed the whole cup in the next moment. Then, she licked her lips and glanced at Leon's cup.
At the same time, Leon noticed her gaze from the corners of his eyes before he shrugged nonchalantly and offered his drink to her.
"The elvish fruit wine of your city is quite good, Lord Rhuvek. You sure know how to enjoy yourself. I should return the gesture in kind," Leon casually said.
Shortly after, Leon took out a piece of sea monster meat and chopped it into diced pieces that shortly fell on a plate of ice he prepared. Then, he took out several spirit herbs to create the special dipping sauce and placed them in a bowl beside the ice plate.
カップルが輸送コンテナを豪華な家に変身,中を見てみようTOPSSEEK
"The meat of a Transcendent-level sea monster found in the Boundless Sea accompanied with my special dipping sauce; it's my unique recipe. Please have a try, Lord Rhuvek," Leon offered.
With a casual wave of his hand, the ice plate of chopped sea monster meat and bowl of special dipping sauce flew over to Lord Rhuvek. It landed on his table without causing any spillage.
"Lord Rhuvek, please let me test for poison for you," a nearby servant quickly offered.
However, Lord Rhuvek immediately frowned at the servant and rebuked him, "How dare you doubt Lord Leon's good gesture. A person of Lord Leon's caliber doesn't need to scheme against me to gain an advantage."
"You're right, Lord Rhuvek. I have misspoken without thinking. Please punish me."
"Leave. Your service is not required here."
"Yes, my Lord."
Shortly after dismissing the servant from the grand hall, Lord Rhuvek picked up a piece of sea monster meat with his bare hand. He dipped it in the special sauce prepared before swallowing it whole.
His eyes brightened in the same manner as Rainshine did with her wine.
"The freshness and texture of this sea monster meat are exquisite compared to the fishes we have around here; coupled with the dipping sauce, the taste is elevated to a whole different level."
Lord Rhuvek savored the taste with a dreamy look before adding, "Lord Leon has truly opened my eyes. Besides being a powerful expert, you are also a skilled spirit chef."
Leon smiled slightly.
With the spirit herbs that he used to create the special dipping sauce and the Transcendent-quality sea monster meat, the combination of the two was comparable to other tier-3 spirit food.
After Leon and Lord Rhuvek exchanged some casual pleasantries and their interests in fine food and drinks, they moved on to more serious topics.
"If you don't mind me asking, how did you come down to Lower Abyss Domain, Lord Leon?" Lord Rhuvek inquired.
"How did I come down, you ask?" Leon rubbed his chin before replying, "Is there not a big hole right beyond your gates? How else could I have come down, Lord Rhuvek?"
"There is indeed a big hole," Lord Rhuvek nodded.
"However, the entrance to the Lower Abyss Domain should have been sealed by a very thick wall of tree roots and vines. Even if Paragons try to cut their way through that region, the tree roots and vines will continuously regenerate. Ultimately, Paragons will have no choice but to give up."
"How did you manage to get past all that?" Lord Rhuvek repeated his question before adding, "More importantly, the guardian didn't attack you? You didn't run into it?"
"How did I manage to get past all that, huh? Well, it's quite simple if you use the wood ability. More importantly, there was a guardian? I did not run into one," Leon replied.
Based on Lord Rhuvek's words, it didn't seem like there was anyone with the wood ability.
However, that was definitely not true. Leon had seen several dark elves tending to the spirit herbs while he was on his way.
In that case, the so-called guardian mentioned was the biggest problem in crossing the region?
"I don't know what to say," Lord Rhuvek smiled wryly before saying, "Your luck is very great, Lord Leon. Had you run into the guardian, the situation would have been very dangerous—even for you. After all, that guardian is a Half-step Divine Beast-level Wood Serpent."
"It is very tricky to fight and defend against it in that region," Lord Rhuvek added.
Sure enough, the guardian was the problem – Leon thought after hearing Lord Rhuvek speak.
Nevertheless, he did not expect to pass through the whole region without picking up the presence of such a powerful beast.
Either the Half-step Divine Beast-level Wood Serpent's stealth ability managed to escape his detection or it simply wasn't within his divine sense range.
Leon furrowed his brows in thought.
If the Half-step Divine Beast-level Wood Serpent had been outside his divine sense range then he was quite lucky indeed.
However, if there's any chance that the Half-step Divine Beast-level Wood Serpent's stealth ability exceeded his detection level, then he found it quite strange why it didn't attack him.
Chapter 1052 Ancient Battlefield
Perhaps, Leon avoided detection because he didn't pass through the region forcefully. Or maybe the Half-step Divine Beast let him off because he didn't target the Celestial Wood Spark.
Whether the case was, what's important was that he made it through the region without getting attacked.
Nevertheless, Lord Rhuvek wasn't too interested in how Leon made it through the region guarded by the Half-step Divine Beast-level Wood Serpent.
He was more curious to learn about something else.
"What's the situation like on the surface, Lord Leon? Are there still many surviving races left?" Lord Rhuvek inquired.
Leon glanced at Lord Rhuvek thoughtfully without answering immediately.
"What kind of situation do you expect on the surface? Does it have something to do with your Dark Elf Clan living in the Lower Abyss Domain, Lord Rhuvek?" Leon replied with a question of his own.
Lord Rhuvek didn't mind that his question wasn't answered. He had to be accomodating since the city's wellbeing was on the line.
"It seems Lord Leon doesn't know much about history. Very well, I shall tell you about it, Lord Leon," Lord Rhuvek said willingly before asking, "But before I begin, how much do you know about the world's history?"
"I know that the Nova Empire dominated the world over ten thousand years ago and prospered due to their technological advancements. However, it was also their technology that brought about their own downfall when the Cataclysm arrived," Leon stated.
2023年の世界で最も売れた自動車トップ20のうち,半数が日本車で,1位の車種は64%の成長を達成しました.TOPSSEEK
"From then, the world was reset due to the great destruction created by the Nova Empire's great megastructures falling from the sky. Supposedly a great battle between Celestial-level beings took place several hundred to thousands of years later."
"I don't know much about what happened since then until the Cataclysm arrived a second time over five hundred years ago, which caused the beasts to rampage and forced humanity to retreat into a corner of the continent, where they took refuge for the following years."
"Then, over a month ago, the Cataclysm came a third time, causing the beasts to rampage once more. That being said, the situation has been brought under control—at least in the lands controlled by humans."
Leon recounted what he knew about history while skipping a few details.
"I see… There have been three more Cataclysms in the last ten thousand years, huh?" Lord Rhuvek uttered with a contemplating look before softly muttering, "It seems like the world is running out of time."
"The world is running out of time? What do you mean, exactly?" Leon raised an eyebrow.
"According to the ancient texts left behind by our ancestors, the world we live in is one of several other ancient battlefields in the cosmos," Lord Rhuvek mentioned.
"And each time a battle between the Celestials and Demon Lords and above level beings takes place, the wanton destruction would wipe out nearly all life off the face of the planet and reset the world to a backward era."
"This sort of reset has happened many times in the past several tens of thousands to several hundreds of thousands of years. Even our ancestors didn't know how many times the world had been reset before their time."
"The only ones who could survive such destructive battles were those purposely protected by the Celestials and Demon Lords, or those who fled to the deeper parts of the subterranean world like our ancestors did."
"However, there is only so much damage the world can take. Our ancestors prophecized that a time would come when the world would eventually collapse. Hearing Lord Leon mentions the frequency of these so-called Cataclysms, I can't help but think it has something to do with the world's end."
"That being said, if Lord Leon wants to read the ancient texts recorded by our ancestors, you will have to travel to our main clan and seek permission from the clan leader. Only the main clan's leader is allowed to keep and protect the ancient texts," Lord Rhuvek stated.
As Leon listened to Lord Rhuvek speak, his eyes flickered with deep thoughts.
He wondered if the war between Celestials and Demon Lords that occurred numerous times throughout history had anything to do with the appearance of the dimension crack to the chaotic sea of nothingness in Gaia's Core.
If that was the case, it would mean that Primal Chaos had grown weak to the point that even those not at the True Divinity Realm could cause irreversible damage to Primal Chaos and speed up its eventual destruction.
Nevertheless, Leon pushed aside the thoughts for the time being and said with a nod of understanding, "I see… Now I understand why your clan lives down here. However, don't you ever dream of returning to the surface?"
"Even if another war between the Celestials and Demon Lords breaks out again, such events don't frequently happen, no?" Leon asked shortly after.
Lord Rhuvek smiled slightly before he replied, "Our people are determined to live in the Lower Domain Abyss until the end of time."
"Why?"
"The surface is, of course, very great— at least, according to what we were told about it. None of my people had personally seen the surface. However, no matter how great the surface is, it won't matter if our clan is wiped out in a single stray attack," Lord Rhuvek stated.
"It's not worth living on the surface if we have to live in constant fear that another world-resetting great war could break out again. Compared to that, the Lower Abyss Domain is much better. You have seen for yourself, Lord Leon."
"Besides the insect races being a little troublesome to deal with, we are not lacking in resources down here," Leon Rhuvek mentioned.
"That's true," Leon admitted with a nod.
The Dark Elf Clan was especially rich in minerals.
"That being said, I have some doubts regarding the situation on the surface. Lord Leon said a battle between the Celestials and Demon Lords occurred several thousand years ago," Lord Rhuvek mentioned.
"However, several thousand years doesn't seem to be enough time for the world to recover from the destruction…"
"Ahh…" Leon uttered with a look of understanding.
The last battle between Celestials and Demon Lords had occurred inside the Radiant Heaven Realmship.
Chapter 1053 Magma Domain
"I understand why you find it strange, Lord Rhuvek. However, that is because you have the wrong assumption regarding the situation," Leon stated before explaining, "A battle between the Celestials and Demon Lords had indeed occurred several thousand years ago."
"However, that battle did not bring much destruction to the lands on the surface. The battle was fought in a contained space, a secret realm that the humans and demons discovered."
"It was there that I found clues of such a battle occurring in the past," Leon stated.
Lord Rhuvek's eyes brightened at the mention of secret mention before the light in his eyes dulled after a few moments.
Even if there was a secret realm with plenty of opportunities on the surface, it would have nothing to do with him.
He didn't intend to visit the surface just because he met someone from there.
More important, his body was adapted to the dark environment of the Lower Abyss Domain. The sunlight would be very painful for him—in fact, it might even be deadly.
"I see. That makes sense," Lord Rhuvek uttered with understanding before adding, "For this secret realm to withstand the battle between the Celestial and Demon Lords, it must be very sturdy."
"That aside, Lord Leon should have understood the whole picture about our world's history, and I have also learned a bit about the situation on the surface from Lord Leon," Lord Rhuvek said shortly after.
Leon calmly nodded.
2023年の世界で最も売れた自動車トップ20のうち,半数が日本車で,1位の車種は64%の成長を達成しました.TOPSSEEK
After learning history from Lord Rhuvek, Leon gained a clearer understanding of the world.
At the very least, he understood why the world had so many huge pocket spaces and buried ruins with treasures deep under the earth.
Suddenly, Leon thought of something and said, "The Dark Elf Clan had lived in the Lower Abyss Domain, far away from the world-resetting battles between Celestials and Demon Lords on the surface, for tens of thousands of years."
"Furthermore, resources in the Lower Abyss Domain and abundant. Given these conditions, your Dark Elf Clan must have quite a few powerful experts, no? Perhaps, even some Celestials?" Leon probed.
However, contrary to Leon's expectation, Lord Rhuvek smiled bitterly before shaking his head.
"If our clan had given birth to a single Celestial in the past tens of thousands of years that we existed, we would have dominated the Lower Abyss Domain already. We wouldn't be pestered by the insect races like we are now."
"Forget about reaching the Celestial Realm; it is simply impossible to obtain that realm in the Lower Abyss Domain. Just reaching Peak Paragon alone is already hard enough."
"Aside from our current clan leader in the main clan, only two other members of our clan had ever reached Peak Paragon in their lifetimes," Lord Rhuvek stated.
Leon revealed his astonishment before asking, "The Celestial Realm is impossible to obtain in the Lower Abyss Domain? How did you come to such a conclusion, Lord Rhuvek?"
"This wasn't my conclusion, Lord Leon," Lord Rhuvek shook his head and said, "This conclusion was made by our main clan leader after he studied the notes left by the past Peak Paragons in our clan."
"The Lower Abyss Domain has almost everything, but it lacks the most crucial element to advance to higher realms in awakening cultivation, astral energy. Astral energy can be found everywhere in the outer world, but not here in the Lower Abyss Domain."
"I see. That makes a lot of sense," Leon agreed with a look of insight before muttering thoughtfully, "You cannot understand the stars if you have never seen them."
"That's right. Lord Leon can put it that way," Lord Rhuvek nodded before saying, "Our clan leader only managed to advance to Peak Paragon after cultivating in the Magma Domain."
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"The magma energy in the Magma Domain is the closest thing to the sun's solar energy, which gives life and strength to all beings in Primal Chaos. Alas, without the baptism of cold space, it will never become astral energy, let alone be transformed into celestial energy."
"As such, the Celestial Realm is simply out of our reach," Lord Rhuvek stated.
"I see," Leon rubbed his chin before wondering, "How long has your clan leader reached Peak Paragon? If he figured out magma energy from the Magma Domain could help Paragons breakthrough the bottleneck, shouldn't there be more Peak Paragons now?"
"On the contrary, no," Lord Rhuvek shook his head and said, "It was by luck that our clan leader managed to advance to Peak Paragon by cultivating in the Magma Domain. Others don't have the same luck."
"You see, the Magma Domain itself is a very perilous place. Trying to withstand the high temperature in that place is one thing, but there are also terrifying fire-attribute creatures, fire spirits, and even fiery oddities that thrive in that domain."
"Not everyone is a fire-user like our main clan leader, let alone a Late Paragon before he made the breakthrough to Peak Paragon in that perilous place."
Lord Rhuvek suddenly clapped his hands together before saying, "Anyhow, let's not talk anymore about this topic."
"If Lord Leon wishes to learn more about the Magma Domain, you will have to find our clan leader in the main clan. You will have to forgive me for my limited knowledge."
"You're too polite, Lord Rhuvek. I have learned much from you," Leon said earnestly.
"As have I, Lord Leon," Lord Rhuvek smiled amicably before his eyes suddenly flickered with interest. "About the trade you mentioned, what do you wish to trade with our city, Lord Leon?"
Even though Lord Rhuvek wasn't interested in visiting the surface, he was excited to obtain some local specialties from the surface.
Sea monster meat he tried earlier, for example, was not only delicious but beneficial for his body cultivation.
And that was only the meat of a Transcendent-level sea monster.
If he could gain a steady supply of Paragon-quality sea monster meat prepared by a Tier-5 Spirit Chef, he had hopes of becoming a Paragon in body cultivation as an alternate path from awakening cultivation.
"I can see that the sea monster meat has left quite an impression on you, Lord Rhuvek," Leon smiled.
Chapter 1054 Interrupted Negotiation
"It has," Lord Rhuvek nodded before saying, "However, Lord Leon isn't just planning to trade sea monster meat with our city, right? How about we both be upfront and lay down everything we want and have to offer."
"Sure. That sounds good. I like a straightforward deal," Leon nodded before saying, "Then, I start first. I am interested in high-quality insect materials and your city's runic knowledge."
"That's it?" Lord Rhuvek uttered with surprise.
"For the time being, these two are at the top of my list. I'm sure your city has other things that would catch my interest. However, I have yet to learn everything your city has to offer," Leon stated.
"Fair enough," Lord Rhuvek calmly nodded and said, "I can arrange a guide to tour Lord Leon through the city later."
"However, high-quality insect materials and runic knowledge are the foundations of our city. The only reason our city can stand tall against the throngs of Paragon-level insects in the Lower Abyss Domain is thanks to our equipment and weapons."
"Given Lord Leon's strength, it shouldn't be difficult for you to obtain high-quality insect materials if you wanted to. That being said, I am still willing to trade our city's high-quality insect materials and runic knowledge."
"Of course, that is under the assumption that Lord Leon is willing to offer something of equivalent value in exchange for them. Although the value of this sea monster meat is quite good, it's still not quite enough," Lord Rhuvek stated.
"Transcendent-level sea monster meat won't be enough, then how about Paragon-level sea monster meat?" Leon uttered.
"Paragon-level sea monster meat would indeed be precious," Lord Rhuvek nodded before adding with clear interest, "In fact, I am willing to pay a high price for Paragon-level sea monster meat."
"However, the real question is how much Paragon-level sea monster meat does Lord Leon have to offer? And are you only trading with Paragon-level sea monster meat?" Lord Rhuvek asked shortly after.
"Of course not," Leon shook his head with a smile and said, "That is just one of the options, Lord Rhuvek. I have plenty of other items to offer. For example, cultivation pills and primordial body cultivation methods."
As Leon and Lord Rhuvek negotiated their demands and offers, Rainshine yawned with boredom while listening to them.
2023年の世界で最も売れた自動車トップ20のうち,半数が日本車で,1位の車種は64%の成長を達成しました.TOPSSEEK
She didn't understand much about what was going on, nor did she have any place in the conversation.
It was a talk between leaders.
Nevertheless, Rainshine didn't have to listen to her master's talk with Lord Rhuvek for too long before it was rudely interrupted by another fairy barging into the grand hall with urgent news.
"My Lord, those mutants are back again," the fairy messenger informed.
Lord Rhuvek's pleasant expression immediately turned serious before he stood up and turned to apologize to Leon.
"I deeply apologize, Lord Leon. However, it seems that we will have to postpone our negotiations. A matter that requires my immediate attention has appeared."
"What's going on?" Leon raised an eyebrow with interest.
"There isn't time to explain, Lord Leon. If you like, you can follow me. I will explain on the way," Lord Rhuvek suggested before adding, "Perhaps, you can even lend us some of your great strength. Our city will be grateful if you do."
"Alright. Lead the way, Lord Rhuvek," Leon said with a nod.
Seeing the urgency in Lord Rhuvek's eyes, Leon did not waste too much time and readily agreed to follow Lord Rhuvek to check out the situation.
"Let's go, Rainshine."
"Yes, Master!"
Rainshine shot up onto Leon's shoulder with excitement after sensing some action.
Nevertheless, Leon quickly followed Lord Rhuvek and the fairies out of the palace, where a platoon of Transcendent-level dark elven soldiers quickly gathered and waited on them.
"We greet the City Lord!" the platoon shouted in unison.
Lord Rhuvek swept his gaze across the platoon before he nodded with acknowledgment after confirming everyone was present. The city's troops were punctual in their response to the threat to the city.
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"Where are the mutants?"
"At Howling Wind Gate, my Lord."
"Then to Howling Wind Gate, we go."
"Yes, my Lord!"
Shortly after, the platoon was dispatched to Howling Wind Gate under Lord Rhuvek's lead.
As Leon followed the group, he found out the city did not occupy all of the space within the big cave. There was still plenty of room for expansion—or rather, the dark elves make room for expansion when necessary.
Nevertheless, Howling Wind Gate was just one of many gates. Every tunnel leading out of the cave was a gate.
"What's the deal with these so-called mutants, Lord Rhuvek? What is the whole city on edge at the mention of them? Are they powerful?" Leon inquired along the way.
"They aren't powerful," Lord Rhuvek his head before adding, "However, they can be if we don't deal with them swiftly. They are very troublesome existences that we cannot ignore once they appear."
"When these mutants first appeared around ten thousand years ago, we didn't think much about them. Because they are very vile and disgusting existences, our ancestors didn't want anything to do with them."
"Alas, few of our clan's cities were lost because of that choice. We did not see the potential danger these mutants posed back then," Lord Rhuvek stated.
"But your clan learned your lesson since then and decided to exterminate every mutant on sight now, huh?" Leon uttered thoughtfully before asking, "What are they exactly?"
"I'm afraid I don't really have an answer to that, Lord Leon," Lord Rhuvek said apologetically.
"No one really knows what these mutants are. They are unlike any race we have ever come across. They are very parasitic and aggressive. They attack and assimilate anything that moves."
"Is that so?" Leon furrowed his brows in deep thoughts.
The mutants described by Lord Rhuvek sounded exactly like a certain group of vile creatures that had been influenced by the Wrath Law.
Although Leon suspected it, he could only be sure once he saw the mutants with his own eyes.
Although Lord Rhuvek knew Rainshine was a Paragon, he thought she specialized in speed and lethality.
However, contrary to his expectations, the adorable little thing fought in a very savage and brutal manner that was unlikely of her small appearance.
Lord Rhuvek was completely flabbergasted.
Even the platoon of Transcendent-level dark elves was astounded by Rainshine's way of battle.
However, the dark elves didn't have the luxury of being distracted as they fended off the other Rank 2 Transcendent-level Black Ants. They only sensed what happened.
Nevertheless, Rainshine did not pay attention to the dark elves' reactions. After finishing off the Paragon-level Black Ant, she dashed over to help the dark elves clean up the rest of the black ants.
Upon seeing that, Lord Rhuvek quickly recovered from his shock and also assisted.
A few breaths later, all the black ants were killed.
Afterward, the dark elves started collecting the spoils of their battle, storing the black ants' carapaces in their interspatial storage rings.
However, they did not touch any of the black ants finished off by Rainshine.
"Since the Paragon-level Black Ant and the other few Rank 2 Transcendent-level Black Ants were killed by Rainshine, we won't take any of them. All their carapaces belong to you, Lord Leon," Lord Rhuvek said.
Leon nodded and pocketed all the remaining carapaces into his Worldspace.
"Let us continue before more insects are attracted over by the commotion."
"Alright. Sounds good."
Shortly after reaching an agreement, Leon and the group swiftly left the area and headed toward D Sector. Along the way, Leon found many more tier-4 spirit herbs than he did in B Sector.
However, he had yet to come across a tier-5 spirit herb.
"There are so many spirit herbs in this place. Does the Dark Elf Clan not gather them?" Leon casually inquired.
"We do actually, Lord Leon," Lord Rhuvek answered.
"However, we only take what we need and only when we need them. After all, it's not easy for spirit herbs to grow. Each time a spirit herb is harvested, the spirit energy level in the region decreases, and the time it takes to recover also increases."
Leon quietly acknowledged Lord Rhuvek's point.
Considering the Dark Elf Clan heavily relied on runecrafting, whether it was for everyday life necessity or survival, a decrease in spirit energy was a significant loss for them.
However, spirit herbs were essential ingredients for refining cultivation pills--cultivation pills that make breakthroughs to higher cultivation levels possible.
Nevertheless, both choices had pros and cons, and it was clear to Leon that the Dark Elf Clan took the conservative choice.
Although their conservative choice didn't allow them to produce powerhouses to dominate the Lower Abyss Domain, it was enough to preserve their way of life for the past tens of thousands of years.
As the group approached the entrance to D Sector, they spotted traces of insect blood on the group with several other traces of battle in the area.
However, the insects themselves were nowhere to be seen.
"Looks like the mutants fought some insects in this location," a Late Rank 2 Transcendent-level Dark Elf commented as he swiped the insect blood on the ground with two fingers and rubbed them together with his thumb to study.
"Seeing as there are no remains of the mutants and insects, there are two possibilities. Either the mutants were eaten by the insects, or the mutants assimilated the insects and moved on. According to the readings from our detectors, the latter is more likely to be the case."
"Which means the mutants are still alive and have entered D Sector. This also means that our mission has not changed; we will enter D Sector, find the mutants, and exterminate them all before they get any more chances to grow further," Lord Rhuvek stated solemnly.
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Fortunately, they have Lord Leon and Rainshine with them. A Peak Paragon and Late Paragon were reassuring to have on the team.
Even as they were about to enter D Sector, Lord Rhuvek didn't feel as pressured as he would without them.
"Prepare the tools. Since we are entering D Sector, we will also map the unmapped areas for future references."
"Yes, my Lord!"
After Lord Rhuvek instructed, several dark elves immediately took out scribing pens, white crystals, and leather maps.
Evidently, these Rank 2 Transcendent-level dark elves weren't just the city's elites in terms of strength but also proficient runemasters.
Leon was immediately curious how they would update the map using the white crystals, which were semi-transparent and conductive with spirit energy.
However, as they were leaving C Sector, Leon could not help but say, "Although your mission is to exterminate the mutants, are you not interested in finding out where they came from, Lord Rhuvek? If you eliminate them at the source, you won't be bothered by them in the future."
"That sounds great, Lord Leon. I believe the whole Dark Elf Clan and even the dwarven clans would love to do that," Lord Rhuvek said.
"However, no one knows where these mutants came from, nor why they keep coming. According to our detectors, they seem to just appear out of thin air. Furthermore, we've noticed a certain behavior from the mutants' movements in the last few instances they appeared."
"They seem to be trying to enter the Magma Domain, though I have no idea why. Even so, we don't intend to let them do as they please," Lord Rhuvek stated.
"The Magma Domain, huh?" Leon uttered thoughtfully.
Reasons told Leon that it wasn't simple as that. He felt the mutants' destination might be further than the Magma Domain. Gaia's Core seemed like the more likely target.
However, targeting Gaia's Core would require the mutants to have a clear purpose and hierarchy of command within their ranks.
In other words, the higher-ups in the mutants were intelligent, and they knew something about Gaia's Core.
'What do they want from there?' Leon mused. In any case, there was something he needed to do first before figuring that out.
Leon suddenly summoned a fireball and fired it into a specific spot in the high cave ceiling, burning away the plants and uncovering a hidden hole.
"Are you sure you don't know where the mutants come from, Lord Rhuvek? They seem to have come from one of these hidden holes, no?"
"T-this is...!"
Lord Rhuvek and the rest of the dark elf platoon raised their heads to gaze at the hole in the cave ceiling with shock and surprise.
After a few moments, Lord Rhuvek returned his attention to Leon and asked with amazement, "Lord Leon, how did you know a hole was hidden there?"
"I have my means," Leon replied dismissively before saying, "More importantly, no one found out the mutants were coming from the holes in the ceiling? I find that hard to believe."
"You are truly our lucky star, Lord Leon," Lord Rhuvek said wryly before scratching his head with embarrassment.
"As embarrassing as it sounds, it is true that we never figured out where the mutants came from. Our detectors have always picked up the mutants' first appearance in C Sector, and we had long suspected they had an entrance somewhere in C Sector."
"However, we never found it. C Sector may have been mapped, but it isn't easy for us to explore freely due to the dangers posed by the insects' nests and Paragon-level threats. As such, we always had to be careful when we try to investigate C Sector."
"Even so, Lord Rhuvek should have suspected the cave ceiling, no? Given how many plants are growing on the ceiling, it wouldn't be easy for you to rule it off the list unless you scoured every part of it," Leon stated with furrowed brows.
"You are absolutely right, Lord Leon," Lord Rhuvek agreed with his point while embracing his clan's mistake.
"The cave ceiling was completely ruled off the list of suspected areas in our records. I suspect that one of my predecessors, the previous city lords, must have made a bold assumption regarding the ceiling and crossed it off in the records."
"The mutants are not intelligent, so it wouldn't be strange to think they wouldn't hide their tracks when they enter C Sector," Lord Rhuvek mentioned.
"The mutants aren't intelligent?" Leon repeated with a slight smile before saying, "This in and of itself is a bold assumption, Lord Rhuvek. In fact, it's a grave mistake to think so."
"I haven't seen these so-called mutants that threaten your clan, but according to what I've learned so far, these mutants clearly have a purpose for heading to D Sector. Even if all the mutants you encountered were never intelligent, they must be capable of following commands from ones that are."
2023年の世界で最も売れた自動車トップ20のうち,半数が日本車で,1位の車種は64%の成長を達成しました.TOPSSEEK
"Nevertheless, I find it quite strange that regarding such a big threat as the mutants, one of your predecessors would be so lax as to boldly cross off a suspected area without thoroughly investigating it," Leon mentioned.
As Lord Rhuvek heard that, he deeply frowned before seeking Leon's opinion, "Are you suspecting that one of my predecessors was a traitor, Lord Leon?"
"I don't want to interfere with your clan's matters nor start any unnecessary trouble for your clan, but that does seem to be the case to me. In fact, there might even be more than one traitor," Leon stated.
Lord Rhuvek's frown deepened even further after hearing Leon's answer. He found it inconceivable and hard to believe.
"But how can there be traitors in our clan? What could they possibly gain from sabotaging the investigation? Do they want to destroy the clan?" Lord Rhuvek wondered with a deep frown.
It did not cross his mind that there could be dark elves working with or for the mutants. He didn't think it was possible.
"My Lord... I don't want to interrupt, but don't we have more important matters to deal with right now?" a Peak Rank 2 Transcendent-level Dark Elf reminded.
Lord Rhuvek was startled for a moment before his mind cleared up.
"You're right. I was too distracted by the notion of traitors in our clan," Lord Rhuvek acknowledged his mistake with a nod.
"Mark that hole on the map, and have someone seal it immediately! Once we deal with the mutants in D Sector, we will return to investigate it and review all the investigation records we have on the cave ceilings!"
"Yes, my Lord!"
The dark elves immediately complied after Lord Rhuvek ordered.
At the same time, Leon secretly observed the dark elves updating the map. They drew runes on the white crystal with their scribing pens.
Afterward, they extracted the runic images from the white crystal and pasted them into the holographic map.
Leon was quickly intrigued by their methods; it had truly opened his eyes.
While 3D map drawing was a delicate process that wouldn't be a problem for him, he never thought about drawing runes that simply serve no purpose other than for its imagery.
In other words, the runes being drawn had no special effects whatsoever.
They had the cohesiveness of connecting spirit energy. But other than that, they serve no purpose besides possessing certain appearances.
Strictly speaking, they weren't runes but just lumps of spirit energy bound together like one.
In fact, the dark elves were simply weaving spirit energy and using the white crystals to retain their weaved forms.
Leon had given them too much credit when he thought they were also proficient runemasters.
After understanding the secret behind the Dark Elf Clan's 3D map drawing process, Leon found a number of ways to recreate 3D maps without undergoing the same tedious and delicate process.
However, his revised method could only be used by him; the dark elves wouldn't be able to copy his method without possessing Divine Will.
Nevertheless, the Dark Elf Clan's 3D map drawing process could be said be straightforward and simple.
After pondering on it for some time, Leon found ways to improve 3D maps and make them interactive instead of just being 3D images.
A few minutes later, the dark elves finished updating their maps and sealing the hole in the ceiling before it was time to move on.
"Gather up. It's time to head down to D Sector. Every moment that pass is an another opportunity for the mutants to grow. We must eliminate them as soon as possible!"
"Yes, my Lord!"
Chapter 1057 Different People, Different Concerns
Sometime later, Leon arrived in the unmapped D Sector with the group before immediately sweeping the surrounding areas with his divine sense.
The environment in D Sector was not that different from C Sector. It was just slightly richer in spirit energy due to the plethora of tier-4 spirit herbs growing in the region.
Unfortunately, he failed to discover any tier-5 spirit herb and above.
Even so, he was only at the beginning of the D Sector. There was still the whole D Sector to explore, not to mention the unlabeled regions beyond it.
"Since the other cities' elites haven't arrived to exterminate the mutants, we are most likely on our own. As such, be extra careful. We are in uncharted territory now. Remember to map everything you see and remain vigilant. D Sector is notorious for its high activity levels of Paragon-level insects," Lord Rhuvek reminded.
"Yes, my Lord!" the Transcendent-level dark elves complied.
As the group advanced several hundred feet, it didn't take them long before they quickly came across traces of battle.
"Milord, there are traces of—" a Peak Rank 2 Transcendent-level Dark Elf did not finish making the report before the sounds of battle ahead were heard.
"The battle ahead is most likely where the mutants are. Follow my lead, remain prudent, and don't draw unnecessary attention. Even if we have Lord Leon and Rainshine with us, it will be hard for all of you to keep your lives if too many Paragon-level insects attack us," Lord Rhuvek stated.
"Yes, my Lord," the platoon of dark elves responded quietly.
The group advanced another two miles before the sounds of battle drew closer. At the same time, more traces of battle were left behind in the area.
Green and blue blood splattered across the ground with multiple severed centipede legs lying around. Some spirit plants were also stained by the blood, causing them to wither and die.
Rumble…!
The ground shook at irregular intervals. The group could clearly—no, they felt trembles strongly. They weren't far from the battle location.
カップルが輸送コンテナを豪華な家に変身,中を見てみようTOPSSEEK
As the group continued to advance another mile in light steps, the ground trembled at the movements of multiple giant centipedes and black ants rushing toward the same destination they were headed to.
However, the moment they caught sight of each other, the giant centipedes and black ants changed directions and fought each other.
New battlefields were created in their locations as a result.
"We have most likely stepped into one big battlefield. No, it might even be more accurate to say that D Sector is a battlefield. Luckily, none of them has spotted us. Let us keep it that way," Lord Rhuvek quietly spoke after the group hid in the gap between two giant boulders.
"Y-yes, my Lord," the platoon of dark elves responded in trembling voices. They could no longer keep their calm.
It was their first time venturing so deep inside D Sector, and they were already trapped in the middle of one big battlefield with no way out.
"Judging by their sizes, t-they are all Paragons…" a Mid Rank 2 Transcendent-level Dark Elf determined after peeking at the giant insects.
If they attract the Paragon-level insects, it will be all over for them; their grave would be right where they were.
Multiple dark elves sweated nervously as they had that thought.
"This is troublesome…" Lord Rhuvek frowned for another matter.
"If the black ants and giant centipedes are warring each other all over D Sector, there's no telling with battlefield belongs to the mutants. Furthermore, even if we locate the mutants, we risk attracting all the surrounding Paragons as we try to eliminate them. It seems like this mission won't be easy."
"Given these circumstances, we will need to wait for the Paragon-level insects to kill each other before we continue our search," Lord Rhuvek stated.I think you should take a look at ραΠdαsnovel.cοm
However, Leon was not interested in waiting.
"I don't have time for that," Leon calmly uttered as he stepped out into the open, under everyone's drastic change in expression. "We just need to kill everything in sight to locate the mutants."
He still had things to do on the surface. He wasn't going to sit around and waste time.
The Tier-7 White Spear quickly appeared in Leon's hand before he threw himself into the battle between the black ants and giant centipedes with a stomp.
Swish!
2023年の世界で最も売れた自動車トップ20のうち,半数が日本車で,1位の車種は64%の成長を達成しました.TOPSSEEK
A Paragon-level Black Ant was quickly beheaded with a swing of Leon's Tier-7 White Spear.
Not much strength was required as the Paragon-level Black Ant's defense was no match for the Tier-7 White Spear's sharpness.
Nevertheless, Leon was quickly bombarded with attacks from the nearby Paragon-level Black Ants as they retaliated for their fallen brethren.
However, Leon quickly evaded all their attacks with his superior movement speed.
At the same time, he stepped into favorable positions before lashing out with his Tier-7 White Spear and beheading all his assailants.
Puchi! Puchi! Puchi!
The Paragon-level Black Ants dropped dead one after the other as they got their heads lopped off. None of them could stand a chance against the might of Leon's Tier-7 White Spear.
If he had used the Overlord Spear Art, he could have finished them all in an instant.
However, doing so would have also destroyed the Paragon-level Black Ants' carapaces. Leon wanted to preserve the Paragon-level carapaces in their best possible conditions.
After all, they were all high-quality equipment.
ραndαsΝοvεl ƈοm Nevertheless, Leon got no chance to relax as the Paragon-level Giant Centipedes also made him their target.
However, they were suddenly attacked by Rainshine as she hopped off his shoulder earlier and commenced her own attacks on the insects in the area.
"Just go for the heads, Rainshine!" Leon hollered before adding, "These insects are all good materials! Try not to damage them!"
"Yes, Master!" Rainshine complied.
Leon wasn't worried for Rainshine in the least.
After all, she was a Late Paragon; she was much stronger than the giant centipedes and black ants, which were only Early Paragons to Mid Paragons.
Nevertheless, Lord Rhuvek and the other dark elves could not help but twitch the corners of their eyes.
While they would have been fearing for their lives, Lord Leon was worried about the materials being damaged.
"We don't live in the same world…" Lord Rhuvek sighed ruefully.
Chapter 1058 Dragon-Sweeping Spear
"This is unbelievable… I knew Lord Leon was strong, but not to this extent. Lord Leon doesn't require much effort to slay those Paragons at all. I don't think we will get to witness Lord Leon's full strength."
"Lord Leon is certainly strong; I admit that much. However, that weapon is also something else. I don't think I've seen such a powerful weapon before."
The platoon of dark elves peeked at the battlefield. And as they watched Leon dominate the Paragon-level insects with ease, they were awed by the scene.
Nevertheless, Leon's Tier-7 White Spear quickly drew all their attention. Even Lord Rhuvek could not help but speculate its quality.
"I don't think that's a tier-6 weapon. Although our Dark Elf Clan can barely produce low-quality tier-6 weapons, I doubt a peak-quality tier-6 weapon would be as powerful as that spear. It is most likely above tier-6."
"Above tier-6… Wouldn't that mean Lord Leon's spear is at least a tier-7 weapon?" The dark elves were greatly astonished after hearing Lord Rhuvek's speculation.
Their Dark Elf Clan was full of Runemasters but producing a tier-7 artifact was beyond their abilities. They could only dream about it.
And yet here they are, witnessing the might of a tier-7 weapon in action.
"So this is a tier-7 weapon… It's powerful beyond belief…" a Mid Rank 2 Transcendent-level Dark Elf quietly muttered without taking his eyes off Leon's Tier-7 White Spear.
Even so, the dark elves found it hard for their eyes to keep up with Leon's rapid movements as he darted through the groups of giant insects, slaying one after the other.
"I wonder if Lord Leon would be willing to—"
"Hmph, don't even think about it," another Peak Rank 2 Transcendent-level Dark Elf interrupted with a snort before the other dark elf could finish. "Lord Leon is doing our clan a great favor right now, and yet you dare to eye his treasure?"
2023年の世界で最も売れた自動車トップ20のうち,半数が日本車で,1位の車種は64%の成長を達成しました.TOPSSEEK
"I don't want Lord Leon's divine weapon," the dark elf quickly shook his head and explained, "I just want to study the runes on the divine weapon."
"Forget whether you can even take the divine weapon apart to look; what will you do if you accidentally ruin the runes inside? You'll be destroying a divine weapon! Can you handle Lord Leon's wrath if that happens? Don't drag the whole clan down with you!" the Peak Rank 2 Transcendent-level Dark Elf chided.
"I know all that…" the dark elf stubbornly clung to his idea as he said, "But if we learn the runes within that tier-7 divine weapon, we can produce more tier-7 divine weapons in the future."
"Not even the dwarven clans have succeeded in producing a perfect tier-6 artifact, and you think it is—"
"Enough!" Lord Rhuvek frowned before strictly saying, "No one is to speak another word regarding Lord Leon's divine weapon. Do not bring this matter up again."
"Yes, my Lord!" everyone answered.
Since the city lord has spoken, the dark elves have no choice but to stop.
Meanwhile, Leon continued to sweep the battlefield, slaying every insect within his sight and pocketing their bodies into his Worldspace.
Before long, the area around the two giant boulders was cleared of insects. Leon didn't wait for Lord Rhuvek and the dark elves before moving to the next battlefield to hunt insects.
Rainshine followed shortly after him.I think you should take a look at ραΠdαsnovel.cοm
Roughly three miles away from the two giant boulders, a bigger battle occurred between the black ants, giant centipedes, and another group that didn't look like any known race.
Without a doubt, they were the mutants mentioned by Lord Rhuvek.
That being said, the mutants looked closer to a condensed form of the fat fleshly abominations, but not really. They hardly look like anything as they had additional centipede legs and ant mandibles sticking out of their bodies.
Nevertheless, Leon confirmed that the mutants were creatures influenced by the Wrath Law as he witnessed them assimilating more severed parts from the black ants and giant centipedes.
"There are about a few hundred black ants and giant centipedes, but only a few dozen mutants. However, these mutants have grown quite a bit. They are at least Mid Paragons—no, they are on the verge of becoming Late Paragons," Leon quickly analyzed the situation.
It was clear that the mutants held the advantage despite being fewer in numbers. It was only a matter of time before the mutants came out on top.
Leon couldn't imagine how powerful the mutants would become at that point.
However, he didn't intend to wait for that to happen.
Swoosh!
Leon took a strong step forward and disappeared in a flash before he reappeared next to a Mid Paragon-level Mutant in the next instance.
Although Leon appeared in its rear, the Mid Paragon-level Mutant had numerous pairs of eyes on its body and had no blind spot.
The moment he appeared behind it, the Mid Paragon-level Mutant immediately reacted as numerous razor-like spikes shot out of its body.
Overlord Spear Art's First Spear – Dragon-Sweeping Spear!
ραndαsnοvεl.cοm Dark energy covered the Tier-7 White Spear before Leon stabbed it into the ground and made a vertical upward swing.
The ground was immediately split apart by a thick, heavy, and black spear force that rushed along the ground like a speedy wyrm moving through the earth, leaving trails of its movement behind.
Nevertheless, the black spear force only traveled a short distance before thick pillars of black light shot out of the ground like a volcanic eruption; each eruption of black light was bigger and taller than the last.
All of the razor-like spikes were destroyed in the first pillar eruption, and the second pillar eruption punctured a hole straight through the Mid Paragon-level Mutant's stomach.
But as the pillar rose taller and taller with its ever-increasing thickness at the bottom, it rapidly expanded the hole until the Mid Paragon-level Mutant directly separated into two parts in that short instance.
The subsequent third, fourth,… seventh pillar eruption followed, catching another two Mid Paragon-level Mutants in his move.
The two Mid Paragon-level Mutants similarly split into two parts after the black pillars punctured them.