Half a year ago Mane had broken into the 9th Stage of the Heaven Realm. It took him about two weeks to consolidate his power at that stage and in less than a week, he was at the peak of the Heaven Realm. By his standards, this was a slow progression. However, when one took a look at his skills, they would understand just why it had taken someone like Mane so long to reach the peak of the Heaven Realm. For every one of his skills was at the Mastery Realm!
As if that wasn't enough, Mane hadn't neglected any of his elements either. Not only did he take his training with the Elemental Triplets seriously, he didn't abandon any of his focus on the elements for which he didn't really have a tutor. And he had been rewarded handsomely for his efforts. For now, all his elements – even Wind which he had a meagre understanding of in the beginning – had reached the Mastery Level of Proficiency!
And that wasn't all. Not only did he focus on his power as an Energy and Body Wielder, exploring the limits of skills like Titan's Might and True Flames, he didn't neglect his training as a Scholar. And the fact that he was now a High Level Scholar was proof of how much work he put into his training.
He had grown much stronger, and along with such strength came an increase and vast improvement in battle strength that was even greater than it was a couple of years ago. Now he was thoroughly a true beast. However, Mane had made all these achievements over 6 months ago. He hadn't improved greatly since. His energy levels remained at the peak of the Heavenly Realm. Neither did they make any strides into the next level, nor Mane look like he was bothered. In fact the young Supreme looked like he couldn't be pestered into putting in any effort to reach the stage above – the realm of Nobles. Why? Had the boy with talent gifted by the Creator finally reached a bottleneck? Had he finally experienced his first roadblock in the path of wielding? Nay, that was not the reason. So why did he remain fixed to one level, tethered to one stage; something that had never happened to him before.
"You wish to use the Chaos here to grow"
"You wish to consume Chaos to reach heights you cannot normally reach in the realm outside"
"Smart boy"
"Greedy boy"
"Seeker of perfection"
"You want to be the epitome of perfection"
"To gain a perfect foundation"
"To make no mistakes"
"What a keen mind"
"Yet a foolish thought"
That's right. Mane knew the price of a hasty breakthrough – he could lose his identity as a Spiritualist! The Realm of Nobles wasn't simply a turning point where one truly entered the ranks of power in the world of wielding. It was at this stage that one finally made a choice on who they wanted to be. One could either: cast aside all other disciplines and focus on one; or one could pursue them all.
When Mane entered this dimension, he was relieved to find out that it was just as he had read about. For it was indeed a dimension where Chaos and Edict coexisted in harmony. The Chaos that hugged his body tightly and hummed in joy to see him was refreshing to his bones, and Mane sought to achieve something never done before here.
It was for that reason that Mane strove to reach the stage of High Level Scholar and sacrificed some of his energy training speed for it. And it was why he sought out the Watchers. These people were those above even the Universe Will! There was only one person similar to Watchers in terms of status in the Allverse – the Reaper, the one who captured souls of the lost.
Watchers above and the Reaper below; a popular expression amongst those who understood the mysteries of the universes. There were three Watchers and one Reaper. In the True Universe, Mane had read about the Watchers. Mane was intrigued by both groups because their status was similar to his. They were special existences of greater stature than all the Supremes who came before him – with the exception of the 6th Supreme. Just like the Watchers, the Reaper lived in the dimension which belonged to neither Universe. And Mane had found this dimension. Naturally his power as a Scholar shot through the roof. Yet he suppressed the urge of his Scholar Manual to facilitate a breakthrough into a Scholar King. He needed to reach the level of Spirit King as well, otherwise he would lose his identity as a Spiritualist. He needed to break through all four disciplines – Body and Energy Wielding, Scholar and Spiritualist – at the same time.
This was possible because the Nobility Realm was the stage where one consolidated their name in the annals of their Universe's Will. And that was why the Universe Will announced the entry of every new Noble. However, this announcement could only be heard by parties involved. For instance, if a member of the Celestial Race broke into the Nobility Realm, the Universe Will's announcement would only be heard by the Celestials who had reached the Nobility Realm and beyond themselves. No other race would hear such a thing. And that was the second reason why Mane wanted to break through in this dimension.
His breakthrough was bound to draw the attention of everyone! Mane belonged to two heavens, and was on the radar of several god races. He was a boy born to rule the heavens, and his identity was a volatile one. He had been hidden on Zandor all these years, and he had been protected. But once his breakthrough came, everyone would know. Asgardians and Olympians alike would hear the call of the Universe Will. And the traitors amongst them would happily sell him out. As if that wasn't enough, because he was the Supreme the gods of other heavens will hear the voice of the Universe Will. For the Supreme belonged to no one! And that was why he sought out the Watchers. He didn't think he would succeed in his task. So one could imagine his joy as he scrolled through the designs of the Elemental Nature Barrier and realised that its creator had deliberately left so many flaws because he or she wanted to seal a gap in space and time. He hoped he was right in his conjecture. And he was!
"Are you going to help me or not?" Mane asked, feigning nonchalance. Unlike with the giant at the gate, Mane didn't feel any real pressure when talking to the Watchers, mainly because they sounded like a bunch of confused people with no particular gender or race. And their auras were nonexistent. They were like beings who existed yet did not. It was a peculiar thing.
"You ask a favor yet speak like one who has dominion over all"
"You exercise your authority as a Supreme yet your authority isn't yet born!"
"Even if it was, who are you to take hold of a path that doesn't belong to you?"
"The Watchers are subservient to no one!"
The voices of the Watchers boomed with anger. Finally, the aura that had been missing all this while filled this space, and Mane felt a terror that he had never felt before. If the giant at the entrance was an immovable boulder even for gods, the aura of the Watchers was like the only crane capable of moving that boulder. It was mighty and stifling. It robbed Mane of his vision and his ability to breath. Yet Mane smiled even under such conditions. Although he wheezed and struggled he still smiled.
"I..almost…thought…you…were…robots. Good…to…know…that…you…are…living…beings." Mane stuttered, and the pressure on him disappeared. Mane slumped onto the ground, the smile he sported when he was embroiled in the aura storm of the three Watchers, still adorning his handsome yet sweat-soaked face. Hildegarde hastily jumped off Mane's shoulder to the side of his head to check on him. Although Mane was fine, it wasn't easy to withstand such grand auras.
"To think that a small child could play us so"
"Yes. That alone is worthy of a reward."
"You shall have your way, Young Supreme"
"This space is yours to use as you see fit."
Along with their acquiesce, the three large pairs of eyes disappeared. And Mane found himself all alone in this space.
"Are you okay?" Hildegarde asked. During the entire ordeal she had been ignored by the Watchers. They seemingly didn't think that much of her to engage her in conversation, or even regard her presence. At least, that was what she thought. If she knew that the gatekeeper had kept her hidden with his aura before she and Mane met the Watchers, she would have thought differently.
"I'm fine," Mane labored into a sitting position as he spoke. It took him about three minutes to shake off the effects of the powerful suppression that brought him to his knees only a few minutes prior.
"Watchers are indeed at a different level. I wonder how powerful the Reaper is." Mane stated in curiosity.
There was but one Reaper, yet this being was enough to contend against the three Watchers. And from what Mane had just experienced, the Watchers were several times stronger than gods! Right now, Mane's spirit was strong enough to withstand the suppression of an average Ascender. In fact, as he proved earlier with Ancestor Pier, Mane could ignore their suppression altogether. He wasn't sure how he'd fare against gods, but he knew that he wouldn't be left so helpless before a god. After all, gods weren't that much more powerful than Ascenders. The exceptions to this rule were of course Elder, Gods, Origin Gods, and Battle Gods.
"I am not eager to find out," Hildegarde stated. "Are you?" she asked sarcastically.
"My curiosity wants to know this, but my mind is terrified of the notion of meeting the Reaper. I doubt he or she would be as reasonable as the Watchers." Mane stated and readjusted himself into a proper meditative pose. Now that he had access to chaos again, he could feed his hungry Spirit. He had cultivated his spirit throughout the years, and it was strong. But it was like an empty shell. Mane had to feed it. Luckily because he only had to feed his Spirit and not work on its growth, he should experience no bottlenecks in trying to reach the High Spiritualist Level, and the Spirit King level that came after.
"I am still too weak," Mane sighed. He thought that now that he could hold his own against an Ascender, he had reached a stage where he could call the world his own. But a single meeting with the Watchers had broken this blind arrogance. Even the Gatekeeper was at a level beyond godhood!
"You're still young. And now that you know that the skies above are breach-able, you have a clear goal." Hildegarde comforted him.
"You're right. Right now, what I must focus on is becoming a Tetra Noble!" Mane's eyes flashed as he closed his eyes and allowed Chaos to bath him. He couldn't swallow Chaos, but allowing it to dance with his Spirit was invigorating, and slowing his Spiritualist level began to rise. It was going to take a while, but in this dimension that knew not time and space, Mane was unbothered. Besides, even if it would have taken a hundred years, he would have still made the same decision.