After taking a big, deep gulp, the dragon blew out steam through its nose and its scales vibrated.
"That feels so good, I was absolutely parched," the dragon said, its voice changing drastically from the previous grumble to a surprisingly cute one, that too with a perfectly polished British accent. Lex was standing perfectly still when he heard it, but still nearly fell over.
"It's been a long time since someone has offered me tea. Not since back in the early days when the Condottiere would have a lot more time. How long it has been."
"Condottiere? Your leader?" Velma asked, positively beaming with excitement and curiosity.
At this point, Lex stopped paying attention, leaving Velma to continue her gossip, for Cwenhild was done with her remarks and they were once again about to begin practice. The timing was a shame. A few more moments, and Lex would have heard the dragons next remarks.
"Leader? No, more like the owner. The Condottiere is the owner of the largest mercenary group in the universe. Where trouble brews, and there is gold to be made, the Reaving Dread shall send forth its armies. Well, based on how much gold the client pays."
The dragon took another sip of the tea, quite pleased with itself. Velma did not care much for that news, since she worked at the best hotel in the universe. And weren't the mercenaries working for their hotel? That meant the hierarchy was clearly established, the Innkeeper was better than the Condottiere. She was more curious about other things. Like, do dragons date? And do they have a type?
Back in the Crystal realm, Lex spent the next day training, as promised, followed by Cwenhild privately testing out Lex's defense. He was not one to brag, but when a girl asked for a show, well, Lex put on a show.
In the end, without having to use any ridiculous weapons, Cwenhild wasn't even able to breakthrough Talk to the Hand. To be fair, the technique built a defense proportional to Lex's own. As it was, a Foundation realm cultivator would have to really put in some effort to hurt Lex, and so the defensive ability of the technique was remarkable, to say the least.
He did not have the heart to tell her that he still had the Ripple shell, another powerful defensive technique waiting for anyone who broke through Talk to the Hand. And, should someone finally succeed in breaking both, every millimeter of his flesh has the same defensive capability.
But while he still had these techniques in reserve, he didn't doubt that Cwenhild, a Body and Spirit cultivator, didn't have secret techniques of her own that would deliver awesome power.
The next day, as promised, Cwenhild outfitted her entire group personally. That was to say, each member received personalized equipment that would strengthen their strongest aspects and make up for their weaknesses.
But while everyone received lithe, maneuverable armor, Lex got a solid metal, sleeveless vest. Not only was it incredibly heavy, actually almost causing Lex's knees to buckle, it had abs engraved right onto the armor! It felt like he was walking around shirtless!
According to Cwenhild, his defense was so ridiculous that trying to run or dodge was a waste of his efforts, and he should just continue to increase his defense further, even at the expense of movement speed. Everyone received a similar helmet that would protect them from soul tracks and physical tracks, but also let Cwenhild communicate with all of them simultaneously.
Next, Lex received a massive, round shield, and a single-handed sword. While the rest were getting fancy weapons, guns and even a self aiming mini-gun attachable to a wrist, Lex looked like a Spartan knockoff from a cheap play.
If there was any consolation, it was that Lex's vambraces had an enchantment that would aid him in drawing arrays. Also, they were extremely durable and further improved Lex's defense. He was so well protected, a turtle would shy away in shame.
The remainder of the day was free, so Lex said his farewell to Amelia before spending a few hours checking up on the Inn. They were still continuing with the preliminary round. With over a million participants in the first round, it was bound to take time. Finally, he went to Cwenhild's apartment at night.
The entire group was gathered there, as they had planned to venture off together. Lex was expecting that the next day there would be some kind of ceremony as well as inauguration. Technically, there would be. But certain elite and privileged students were given an unwritten privilege.
The Minor realms were officially opened at midnight, under the bright light of the ever present Sol birds, and before a majority of participants even knew of it, Cwenhild and her group entered a Minor realm. A teacher had especially come to open the entrance right inside her apartment.
The opening to the Minor realm was unusual. It was not dark, nor was it vague. It felt like there was a window, and Lex could look right into the Minor realm. But at the same time, looking at the entrance hurt Lex's eye, and his brain could not actually absorb the image of the realm beyond.
Passing through the opening, which Lex did with steady steps, felt even weirder. It was like Lex suddenly became aware of the sensation of phantom pain, but instead of feeling pain in some missing limb, he felt it in an entire phantom body that was connected to his consciousness, but not his actual body. But, the next second, the phantom body and actual body switched places, while his consciousness remained absolutely centered between the two.
The next moment, the strangeness receded, and Lex found himself standing knee deep in a bog. The water was warm, and bubbles were releasing some kind of green gas. There was no Sol bird in the sky, nor any celestial body. Instead, a light blue light seemed to be emanating from a mountain range in the distance.
As peaceful as the light seemed, there was an urgent matter that required his attention. Neither the warm water nor the strange gas did anything to Lex, but he knew instinctively that it was not good for his companions.
"Activate your isolation talismans, the air is poisonous," Lex said out loud, warning the rest of the group.
They didn't hesitate, not only because of how weird the air looked, but because Lex had proven his survival skills to them. More than once during training, he had made excellent calls and had earned the group's trust. Or at least, Cwenhilds.
Other than just armor and weapons, they had also been gifted with the best survival equipment and gear. It may seem like Cwenhild was being extremely generous, but none of what she gave them could compare to a single corner of a Minor realm.
"So how do we take control of this Minor realm?" Lex finally asked the big question. It wasn't like he hadn't asked before, but all the answers he would receive in the end were that it would be different for each realm.
"Jovi, scan the area. Bearin, look for a temporary base rest point. Ness, stop drinking that water. Patrick, ready the beacon…" Instead of directly answering Lex, Cwenhild first gave out a few different orders.
Before they did anything, they needed to get their bearing, and preferably step out of the bog - though no dry area seemed to be in sight at the moment. Finally, she turned to Lex.
"Each of these realms was discovered by the academy, but none of them were naturally made. No one knows how old the Crystal realm is, other than perhaps the Crystal race. The history, the heritage, possibly even the key to defeating the Kraven could be in any of these realms, which is the real reason the academy has us explore them. But, it's not like they're sending us to unknown realms. They can estimate the relative level of each realm, which is why we have the chance to take control of this realm. As for how we do it… I don't know yet. Once Patrick can deploy the beacon, it will collect information about this realm and I'll…"
"Enemies!" Lex interrupted her, suddenly looking in a different direction.
"There are hundreds of them, they're traversing under water, and they're strong. We need to run, they're coming our way."
Cwenhild didn't doubt him for even a moment, despite the fact that she could not see these enemies and there seemed to be no indication of them yet. The group started running, and after using Hearts Marathon, even Lex was able to keep up despite his heavy armor. Barely.
But, despite their attempts at escape, the pursuers seemed to be catching up, and soon everyone was able to sense something swimming through the murky water in the distance behind them.
"Mr. Innkeeper," an innocent voice spoke in his mind. "There's a lot of energy in this realm, but… something seems to be eating it. You should get to it quickly, or there might be none left.""What direction?" Lex asked the Lotus in his mind.
"In the distance, where the light from behind the mountain is coming from."
Lex nodded and approached Cwenhild.
"Cwen, I'm not sure if this helps with taking control of the Minor realm but there's a massive energy source in the direction of those mountains."
Cwenhild was genuinely surprised at the information that Lex provided, for those mountains were miles away and it should have been impossible for any of them to detect something so far away unaided. Regardless, she still could not determine if what they were searching for was there, but it was a good guess.
"Jovi, any day now," Cwenhild yelled with a hint of impatience in her voice while she looked at the man. An inexperienced person may look at the members of her group and assume that Jovi was one of the weakest and most useless members, whereas that was far from the truth.
Jovi was a synergist, a profession adopted by those who dual cultivated the soul and spirit paths. Due to his extreme sensitivity towards life as well as energy, he was able to greatly bolster his allies. Based on his strength and skill, he could even directly double someone's strength.
"Give me a moment… done!" the exasperated Jovi yelled, before his body started to emit a yellow light, enveloping the group.
The moment Lex felt the subtle warmth of the light fall on him he felt his speed pick up drastically. The entire group's strength had increased, and they changed their direction towards the mountains.
Running in a bog was frustrating to say the least, and while their combined teamwork should have allowed them to fight off most enemies, there was no point in wasting their energy doing so. After all, it had to be remembered that while they entered the realm early, others would also enter in a few hours. While a majority of them would simply be hunting for anything valuable, some may also have the same objective. It would be best to take the greatest advantage of their head start.
"Tim, do your things," Cwenhild yelled, and the tall man nodded and stopped running, getting left behind. No one questioned it, for they were all familiar with Tim. He was a body and spirit cultivator, and though he did not have a unique profession to set him apart, he had a strong bloodline that made him a demolition expert, as well as extremely capable in setting up traps.
A few minutes later he caught up, looking slightly pale. But his face showed only a satisfied expression, and only a few moments later when an earthshaking explosion took place, his smile grew wider.
Whatever had been following them stopped after that and the group encountered a massive boulder, jutting out of the ground, giving them a dry place to rest for a while. Not that any of them other than Tim needed a rest. The real reason they stopped was so that Patrick, a soul and spirit cultivator, could scan the realm using a special beacon.
Looking at this group might cause one to begin doubting the rarity of dual cultivators, but it had to be remembered that even to be qualified to have Cwenhild consider them, they had to be the best in their respective fields. It would not be an exaggeration to say that they were each one out of a million. In fact, it was probably an underestimation.
Regardless, what set Patrick apart was his unusual cultivation technique. For various, complex reasons, all originating from that technique, he had developed his spiritual sense prior to the Golden Core realm. In exchange, until he reached the Golden core realm, his body would be very frail, and could not take strenuous exertion. But the advantage that he gained in reconnaissance abilities with the help of various equipment was too great to give up.
The rest took this time to check their equipment and keep an eye out for any more trouble. Lex similarly remained vigilant. There was no doubt that his instincts would warn him should any danger approach, but that did not mean he should become complacent. His own experiences were enough to let him know that there were always exceptions to anything you might think is a concrete rule.
A few times, he sensed some creatures approach them beneath the murky water. But each time, after sensing the strength and vigilance of his group, the creatures would retreat. He had not yet actually seen what form the creatures in this realm actually were.
The fact that they hid in the water so far may be one reason, but considering the only light source in this minor realm was very dim, he may as well have missed a few creatures passing by in the distance.
"The scan is complete," Patrick said after some time, attracting the attention of the group. "The approximate size of this realm is around 100,000 acres, though with areas that large it becomes difficult to get an accurate guess. There are several, distinct biomes all beside one another. More importantly, there seem to be signs of large ruins in many areas, all of which may contain valuable treasures, or perhaps records about the origin of this realm. There's a lot of interference around the mountains, so I can't get a detailed reading, but I can vaguely detect large structures there as well. There's a good possibility that the largest, or perhaps most intact ruins are there."
Cwenhild considered the possibilities for a moment, then had Patrick chart out a path for them towards the mountain while exploring any nearby ruins. With slight detours, they would be able to fit two different ruins on their journey.
"There we go, we already know what to do. This conquering minor realms stuff is a lot easier than you said it would be," said one of the group members called Ness. Lex's lip twitched as he looked at the girl raising death flags.
Ness was… not the brightest person Lex had ever met. Even trying to be reserved with his judgement, she could only be called dumb. In fact, when they arrived at this realm, Cwenhild had to stop her from drinking the murky bog water from which the poisonous gas was being released. But, for everything she lacked, she was perhaps the most dangerous person Lex had seen at the Foundation realm. To be fair, he had yet to see Cwinhild fight seriously.
But Ness, who followed the body path and a rare and dangerous path called Tino, which was also actually a form of the body path, was extremely fast, strong and vicious. He just hoped that her strength would help her combat the endless death flags she was raising, for even as they left the boulder and headed towards the first ruins, she kept emphasizing how boring this was turning out to be.
After an hour more of jogging Lex couldn't help but admit that the journey had, indeed, so far been much easier than anticipated. Maybe visiting multiple realms and absorbing energy won't be such an ordeal after all.
No sooner had Lex completed the thought that the ground erupted from beneath them, with no forewarning whatsoever. By the time Lex's instincts kicked in, he was already flying through the air, a sharp stone like spear stuck in a large dent in his armor.
In the air, with no sense of what was happening to the rest, he quickly pulled his legs up to his chest, just in time to dodge another rock spear.
Despite the surprise attack, Lex wasn't at all injured. This wasn't a result of his sturdiness, but rather of his preparations. He had used Ripple shell, a defensive technique that covered his body the moment he entered the minor realm. The best part was that the technique would stay active until disabled or defeated.
When Lex finally landed, he quickly leaped aside, in case anyone was attacking his landing spot, and took note of the situation. The enemy was… it looked like some kind of sentient rock that could manipulate the minerals in the ground around it. He took note of the clothes and found that Jovi, Sohee and Patrick were hurt, with Patrick in the worst condition.
Without wasting a moment, he employed Hearts Marathon to boost his speed and sprinted right into the fray. With the element of surprise lost, and with his instincts fully working, he dodged each of the stone spears launched his way with ease.
Without a thought for attacking the rock, he grabbed all the injured and promptly retreated from the fight. This was not cowardice, but the simple fact that if he attacked, he would interfere with the coordinated attack the rest were performing. In any given situation, he would first follow his training, and only take the initiative to make different decisions should a drastic change occur.
Just as he retreated from the combat zone, and set the three down, the ground behind him burst once again, and a barrage of stone spears flew at him.
A cloud of dust and smoke closely followed the eruption of the ground, which, along with the already low visibility, made it impossible to see.
"Damn!" exclaimed Cwenhild as she dashed into the dust cloud. She had no doubt that Lex would survive even if he was taken by surprise, but the other three might not. She used a seemingly simple palm attack in the air, causing a gust of wind to clear the cloud, revealing Lex heroically blocking the stone spears from attacking the three behind him.
If it had just been a single stone attacking him, or even multiple attacking from the same direction, he could have gotten by with using Talk to the Hand. But three different sentient stones seemed to be attacking him from various directions, causing him to run around, blocking each attack with his shield. The three injured members weren't just sitting idly by either. Jovi had Patrick on his back and was trying to build some distance, while Sohee prepared a spell to attack, her attention completely diverted, leaving her vulnerable.
Upon learning the situation was under control, Cwenhild diverted her momentum and attacked one of the sentient stones. Were this a normal stone, her single attack would have pulverized it, but on this rock it only spread a few cracks.
The rocks had no mouths so they could not scream, but the spirit energy surrounding them vibrated violently, causing everyone to be hit by a wave of dizziness. Sohee, however, was able to finish her spell in time. A dome of purple light formed around the three sentient stones, blocking their attacks while simultaneously attacking their souls!
The spirit energy in the air began to vibrate even more frenziedly, giving birth to the illusion of shrieking. Just as Sohee was about to sigh in relief, the ground started cracking, revealing more and more stones.
"We need to regroup!" yelled Lex to Cwenhild. "I can't tell how many there are, but even as is, we're surrounded." Even Lex could only block attacks from a single direction at a time, and with them being surrounded and outnumbered, they would need to work together.
"Leave it to me," yelled Patrick and clapped his hands together.
An invisible, yet strangely tangible ripple traveled through the air, originating from his clap, slowing down the rocks attacks. He did not need to explain what he had done for all the team members knew each other's abilities. The rocks did not have eyes, and while no one could tell exactly how they perceived the world around them, there was a good chance that their perception was based on spiritual energy - similar to the way spiritual sense was derived from spiritual energy.
Patricks clap could create energy ripples within a small radius, effectively weakening all spiritual perception abilities. It was originally designed to work against scouts, but for creatures solely dependent on such abilities, the ripple was even more effective.
Taking advantage of the short interruption, Lex and the others regrouped, though there seemed to be no hope of escaping. More and more rocks were revealing themselves, already increasing the numbers to over a dozen, and during the brief clashes they had, they were not able to kill any of the rocks.
"Can you tell why you aren't able to sense them?" Cwenhild asked Lex. This was the first time Lex hadn't been able to foretell an attack, and they needed to understand if this was a unique circumstance or something that could be replicated.
"Pretty much. I didn't sense anything, because this wasn't a trap. These rocks just happened to be in the ground we were covering. Even so, if they had been asleep, I would still have been able to sense the danger. It's more like they were in some kind of stasis that made them no different from ordinary rocks in the ground."
Cwenhild nodded, understanding the limits of Lex's ability, and moved on to the next matter.
"The situation is serious, but not impossibly so. Form a circle, and coordinate on the attack. Ness, you take lead on the attack and the rest will support you."
"I'll cover the ground so that it doesn't erupt under us," Lex added. "But the range is only about 10 feet so stay close."
Lex's defensive technique, Talk to the Hand, was originally designed only to be used from the hands. However for Lex, who mastered the technique with a depth that may have even surpassed the creator of the technique, making small alterations to use it from his feet was no issue.
The three injured gathered in the center of the circle, all the while activating their abilities to support the team. Silvia, another one of the group members, a body and soul cultivator, began healing them while the rest focused on attacking and defending.
Having collected themselves, and working together once again, their lethality shot through the roof. Ness was a human torpedo, shooting through the distance that separated herself and the target, leaving only destruction in her wake. Tim was using his bloodline to boost the explosiveness of her attacks while Jovi was increasing her speed. Patrick kept causing ripples, to distract the rocks, while the rest either intercepted attacks aimed towards Ness or protected their circle.
The tides changed like a flip of a switch, and the number of rocks finally started decreasing instead of increasing. In just a few seconds, when she managed to destroy 5 of the rocks, even the rocks changed their strategies. Instead of endlessly barraging the circle with stone spears, the rocks rolled towards one another.
The rocks attached themselves to one another with practiced precision, and in a moment, they went from being numerous individual sentient rocks to one massive, humanoid monster made of many small rocks. Ironically, though, the shift made it even easier for them to destroy the newly formed rock monster.
The only reason they were disadvantaged to begin with was the overwhelming numbers, attacking them from different angles. With that advantage lost, it did not matter at all that the rock monster was stronger in this form. After all, their group was not lacking in strength.
"Investigate the rocks, see if there is anything of value. If not, we'll move from here before taking a rest once we put some distance between this place and us," said Cwinheld.
Since Patrick was best at investigation, he scanned the rocks and discovered these rocks were not normal. They could serve as valuable crafting or forging material, but unfortunately that was as far as their speciality went. The rocks were too heavy to take along, and after they grabbed a small memento of the fight, the group sprinted away, this time more vigilant.
As it turned out, the prudence was well founded, for only a few minutes after they left, many strange creatures had been attracted by the sound of fighting. Finding nothing other than the corpses of the rock monsters, the creatures dispersed. Some who were interested in the corpses fought with one another. Yet none of that had anything to do with Lex's group.
They ran all the way to the entrance of a forest and, after scouting for a bit, found a secluded area to rest in. They weren't tired enough to warrant rest, but if the three injured members of the group weren't adequately healed, they would not be able to keep up with the group.
All in all, they had performed well, considering this was their first actual encounter as a group, but the three who were injured couldn't help but feel embarrassed. After all that training, they had been the first to falter.
Of course, there were two other people who were feeling something else entirely. Bearin and Nick, the two who had been targeting Lex, stared at him with disgust. In their opinion, Lex was entire incompetent, and had proved as much by the fact that he hadn't warned them about the attack. One could argue that detecting enemies wasn't what Lex was brought onboard for in the first place, so a misstep in this regard mattered little. After all, every warning he gave them benefited them greatly, and was a bonus on the fact he was supposed to advise them on survival. It was just that, he had been so good and so consistent with it that this little matter had slipped their minds.
Once the three were finally healed, or rather healed enough, the group continued their journey. As they were running in a forest now, they encountered more beasts, but fortunately Lex was able to warn them with ample time, allowing them to overcome the ordeal smoothly.
A few hours later, they finally reached the first ruin, and the moment they laid eyes on the ancient structure, everyone other than Lex gasped in excitement. A moment later though, lex caught on as well.
These were no ordinary buildings - their design, their material, even the size of them, they all signified who the inhabitants of these buildings had once been. The Crystal race!
It would not require a genius to realize the value this realm held if it used to belong to the Crystal race - after all, they were the strongest race around. Furthermore, in the long history of the Crystal realm, it would be unrealistic to say that the Crystal race had never suffered any defeat, or given up any realms.
But, while suffering defeat was a possibility, it was much, much rarer for the Crystal race for several reasons. To fully explain the reasoning, a comparison between a settlement of the Crystal race and the human race can be made.
The first and foremost challenge of a human settlement would come from a hostile environment. The time required for a newborn human to even embark upon the cultivation road was 15 years, and so it was reasonable to say that on average, at least 20 years were required for humans to train a basic soldier from birth. If, during this time, a human settlement faced too many losses or deaths from hostile forces, the settlement would then become vulnerable. In contrast, a newborn from the Crystal race was born with the power level equivalent to a human Golden core cultivator. Even if at birth they could not contribute to security, just by existing, the Crystal race had a higher threshold for the danger they could tolerate.
The second challenge a settlement would face would be transmitting knowledge or skills. For example, a carpenter, no matter how good, is limited in how much they can work. More would have to be trained just to maintain the minimum requirements of a settlement, and regardless of field, the process was a long and tedious one. The Crystal race, however, had a much faster way of transmitting information, in which they could imbue their experiences to those who wanted to learn. While skill would still require training and effort, the learning period was drastically reduced this way. This not only allowed them to retain their settlement, but also easily expand if needed.
Lastly, one of the greatest challenges every settlement would face was the inevitable march of time, and the changes it brought. Leaders would die, buildings would collapse, policies would become outdated and so much more. If each successive generation of that settlement did not rise to the challenges of their times, a single lifetime was enough to destroy even the sturdiest of foundations. But for the Crystal race, while time brought its own challenges, the one thing it did not bring was old age and deterioration. This was because every member of the Crystal race, regardless of age or cultivation, was born immortal.
This was not to say that they never got sick, or could not be killed. Rather, it just meant that the declines that humans faced after they passed their prime was something the Crystal race would never encounter. This meant that they would forever retain their great leaders, their best doctors, their legendary crafters, and since each of them had all but infinity to master their crafts, their standard for 'legendary' was something the other races considered myths.
So now, looking at the ruins of what must have been some kind of Crystal race settlement, the entire group could not help but wonder what had happened here.
"Can you sense anything?" Cwenhild asked Patrick, who was already scanning the buildings using his beacon.
"There are many energy signatures in the buildings - but they're not living. Which means there are either items or treasures of very high value in there or, the most likely scenario, is that the buildings still have some functioning formations."
"Scout the area, I want to know if any beasts have made this their territory before going inside."
Most of the group waited while Patrick and Cindy, the tracking expert, a body and spirit cultivator, went out to scout the area. When they returned, they brought back predictable news.
The ruins had become the nest for a large predator, the Bloody Jit. It was a flightless bird, not because it lacked wings, but because its body was so massive, its wings could not support its weight.
It was extremely deadly, ridiculously strong and had the ferocity of a tornado, so naturally the first order of business was killing the bird. This is where all their training began to shine, and as soon as Patrick provided the group with a map of the ruins and the surrounding terrain, they began planning the fight.
One would expect that in a battle like this, Lex would serve as the bait to bring the beast to an ambush spot. But no, he had a different job, one that would finally allow him to put his arrays to use.
Once the creature was lured to wherever the group wanted to fight, and the combatants began fighting, they would have to ensure that the beast did not escape once the tide of the battle turned against it. Essentially, he would have to create an inescapable cage.
For requests of this level, Lex would have to rely on the book he had gotten from John. The author had recorded a number of excellent arrays, seemingly for any scenario and now Lex would put them to use. But, as he was still a beginner, it would take him well over an hour to create such an array.
Fortunately, preparing to fight the Bloody Jit would also take time. The group began working.
*****
Planet Aram, Jotun Empire Territory
This planet, which was several times larger than Jupiter, was one of the most popular tourist spots in all of Jotun territory. Such a claim was no small matter, as it was not just considering a single galaxy, but all the galaxies under Jotun rule. The reason for that was not only the fact that this planet was abundant in every kind of resource, rich in beauty, absolutely secure as well as a hub for commerce on an interstellar scale, but because this planet was the private property of one of the most noble families in the Jotun Empire.
The Jotun Empire, along with its royal family, had several noble families as well, all with varying levels of importance. Of those families, there were three ranked directly below the royal family, in both prestige and power. Each family had their own speciality, but in such a utilitarian universe, absolute power was the most important factor in deciding a family's worth.
The intricacies of the Jotun societal system were complex, and the standings of the noble families even more so, however, all complexities aside, no matter what, it was absolutely unusual that a member of such a family was running in such panic, on his own planet no less!
The 19 year old Golden core cultivator looked nothing like a scion as he ran through the empty, but usually crowded fruit farm. There was no one chasing him. In fact, this entire region of the planet seemed to be devoid of any people beside the running boy. But the lack of pursuers did not soothe the boy.
At this point, he was running on fumes, as not only had he been awake for several days, he had already overdrawn his spiritual energy. In a few minutes at most, he would collapse. As if aware of this, whoever was after the boy made no effort to close the distance. They were content to watch and wait.
"Where is it... where is it?" he mumbled to himself, his mind on the brink of collapse. Just as he was losing hope, the bracelet on his wrist vibrated and the boy's eyes widened in joy.
With no energy left to put on a performance, he did not hide his actions as he suddenly stopped and started digging in the ground.
As if sensing something unusual about his actions, hundreds of figures suddenly appeared in the farm, all of them hooded, ethereal figures. But, their arrogance had cost them.
The boy suddenly dug up a small container and smashed it open, revealing a golden key and a letter.
Not wasting any time, he grabbed the letter and crushed the key, disappearing in a golden light mere moments before the nearest hooded figure reached his spot.
"I've lost his trace," the hooded figure said, devoid of all emotions.
As if that was all they needed to hear, the remaining figures vanished into thin air, as if they had never been there.
*****
As soon as the boy arrived at the Inn, he fell to his knees, fighting to keep his consciousness. He didn't know where he was, or if it was safe.
As if sensing his distress, a hologram of a human appeared in front of him and informed him that he was at the Midnight Inn, and that he was absolutely safe. Help was already on the way to give him medical aid.
Upon hearing that, the boy smiled, and allowed himself to lose consciousness. After all, he, Noman Butt, was born with a very special power. No one or thing in the universe, regardless of their cultivation level, could lie to him without him finding out. The hologram had not lied when it introduced the Inn, and so he knew he was safe. For now.
Some time later, Noman woke up in the Recovery room. He wasn't in the Recovery Pod for he hadn't actually suffered any grave injuries, just severe exhaustion. It was not something that would recover quickly, and he would be in a weakened state for weeks if not months to come. However, it did seem like the Recovery room had a positive effect on him, so maybe that time could be cut short.
He was in a private room, so he was alone, which allowed him to relax - a little. The letter he brought alongside him was on a table beside him, so he tore it open to read. The message it conveyed was short and simple:
Stay at the Inn as long as you can, it will be able to hide your trace. Adopt a false identity and only leave the Inn once you're able to block all forms of scrying or prophecy.
Your helper in the dark
Noman grimaced when he read the letter. His ability to detect truth was not as simple as it seemed. Regardless of the medium, his ability would stay active. This meant that, even just by reading this letter, he could tell whoever wrote this letter was telling the truth. Furthermore, it was not so easy-to-use technicalities to mislead him. If a person told a truth, but with the intention of providing a false perception, then Noman's ability would detect that as a lie as well.
This was an ability he had since birth, and though he did not understand it completely when he was a child, since the moment he realized what it was, he had kept this ability secret. He was not an heir, or some high-ranking member of the Butt family, but even just as a regular member, the exposure he had was beyond what others could comprehend.
As such, he never even told his parents, or the seniors in his family, about this ability, for more than once he heard the seniors lie. Of course, detecting a lie did not mean he would automatically learn the truth, but sometimes, just knowing falsehood was enough. After all, he had seen many speeches made by prominent politicians and nobles, some even from the royal family, and would immediately know when they were lying.
People would kill him to keep their secrets, and others would kill just to get their hands on his ability. All in all, he just wanted to pretend to be a regular boy from a big family. But it was not meant to be.
Some time ago, he received a letter from the mysterious 'helper in the dark' claiming that, using some kind of oracle, a certain organization had learnt the truth of his ability and was coming to kidnap him for their own purposes. Since then, his life had turned upside down.
Infiltrating his family's planet was already a big deal, but somehow isolating him from everyone, and blocking off anyone else from approaching, took power and influence he could not even imagine. At the very least, they hadn't been blatant about their motives, which meant they were still wary of his family.
He considered just informing his family of his secret as well, but he knew that would lead to a life of being a puppet, which was not something he wanted. He closed his eyes and went back to sleep. When he was feeling a little better, he would go investigate this Inn. At least they were nice enough to not ask him for money before treating him.
But how was he supposed to know that the Inn had directly sent the invoice to his family, who had paid without bothering to investigate what it was for?
*****
Lex stood calmly out in an open field, his mind wandering. He had already finished the array, and all that was needed now was to wait for the Bloody Jit to enter the trap so he could finally activate it. Until he did that, he could not move away.
Eventually, the beast was lured here. He heard it before he saw it, the sharp screeching of a furious bird accompanied by the dull sound of earth being ripped apart, like a massive till cutting through the land.
When it came into sight, to his surprise, Lex found that the bird simply looked like an eagle, just expanded to about fifty feet (15 meters). Its body was pressed directly against the ground, and Lex didn't blame it, for he doubted its leg would be able to carry the weight of its massive body. Instead, it was using its wings to pull itself forward, like a baby just learning to crawl.
Despite the odd nature in which it moved, it was not slow at all. It moved like a train, hurling anything in its path away. It was chasing after Bearin originally, but something about the way Lex stood in the open casually, looking at it as if watching a show, greatly antagonized it. Letting loose another deafening screech, it changed its target to Lex. Yet still, even as its hulking figure bore down towards Lex, he did not so much as flinch.
The calm in his eyes was more deafening than any screech, and his stationary figure more arrogant than any beast. The Bloody Jit was looking forward to crushing the puny human, but it was not meant to be.
Just as the Jit was a few feet away from bulldozing Lex into a bloody pulp, he snapped his fingers and a barrier of light and air erected itself in front of him. The Jit was too close to even comprehend slowing down and crashed into the barrier full force.
Within the barrier, the earth shattered as if struck by a missile, launching massive clumps of dirt and rocks into the air, yet the barrier itself did not even tremble. The Bloody Jit had turned bloody, with its beak caved in, its head disfigured and its body morphed into a ball. Many of its bones were likely broken if not entirely crushed, and Lex did not even want to imagine the condition its spine was in.
Yet the anger in the Jit's eyes did not diminish or weaken, and it glared at Lex like the very purpose of its existence was to murder him.
A whim struck Lex as he watched the unyielding beast and he asked, "Can you understand me? A beast at your level should have some basic intelligence, right? This is a fight you've already lost. Yield to me, and I'll stop them from killing you."
The Bloody Jits aura exploded as it screeched up into the sky, a declaration of its power and hatred.
"A pity," Lex said, feeling disappointed. But he no longer paid the bird any heed. Ness, Bearin and Tim had entered the barrier as well to deal with it, and he did not doubt their ability to slay it even when the Jit was in good health, let alone now.
With his hands in his pockets, Lex began to make his way towards the ruins. He strolled towards the nearest building, ignoring the sounds of combat behind him, and instead he was contemplating his own behavior. It occurred to him that as his cultivation, and along with it his various abilities, grew, his personality was also slowly changing.
This was his first outing since the expedition with Ptolemy, and already he could feel the difference. He was no longer wrecked with worry about his survival, and in fact tested the limits of ability and his control over it. Previously, he would have never waited until the bird almost reached the end of the barrier. As soon as it entered, he would have activated it. Now, though, he pushed it to the absolute last minute.
Maybe it was arrogance in his new found power. Maybe it was an inherent confidence in knowing his limits. Maybe it was just him experimenting with something new.
All he knew for certain, though, was that it felt good not to be worried about dying at the slightest incident. The calm, confident expression on his face finally broke, letting through a small smile. Now he finally felt like he was living. Now he could finally start actually enjoying all the blessings the Inn brought him. He had to be careful not to let his newfound power go to his head, but he could also let himself enjoy it a little.
He suddenly recalled a feeling he once got when he first started hosting the Midnight Games. When the strong and powerful deferred to him, and when he overcame fear to take control of the situation. It was feeling your heart beat in your chest, it was feeling the blood course through your veins.
He took in a deep breath, taking in all the smells of the forest, and as he let the air out of his lungs, he clenched his fists.
'Lex freaking Williams,' he said in his mind, his smile becoming even bigger. Then he stepped into the first ruins - and froze.
The ruins that Lex and the group had encountered were not large. Though covered in plant growth and suffering from obvious signs of wear, some of the buildings had collapsed roofs or walls, even combining all of them there were less than 10 buildings. That meant this was too small to be a town or even a village, if those existed in the Crystle race culture. Lex assumed that this must have either been a travel outpost, a small research camp, maybe even the private property of someone rich, or something along those lines.
A small, adventurous part of him had been hoping that when he entered the building, through some mystical magic or miracle of the Crystal race, he would discover the interior untouched by time, and whatever event drove the race from here. That clearly wasn't the case.
However, when he entered the building, for the briefest of moments, Lex felt like he saw a figure standing inside. The figure disappeared so fast that under normal circumstances, Lex would have questioned if he even saw something at all. After all, it wasn't usual to catch something from the corner of your eye, but when you turn to look, it was something entirely different.
What made him so certain the figure really had existed, though, were the goosebumps on the back of his neck. In that absolute split second, he had felt extreme danger. There was a certainty with which his instincts told him that the figure could overcome his defenses easily, and pose a very real risk to his life.
But, for whatever reason, the figure had no intentions of confronting him. Lex squinted his eyes as he scanned the littered room. The floor was covered in dirt and rocks, alongside broken debris that might have once belonged to this building, but was no longer recognizable.
He remained standing in the doorway, observing the room, until Cwenhild finally joined him.
"What are you looking for?" she asked, having noticed him standing there for a while.
"There was someone here before us," Lex informed her. "Whoever it was, they disappeared as soon as I approached. I'm checking for traps, but I don't sense anything out of the ordinary."
"That's not possible, we're the first ones in this realm. There's still a few hours before others start entering."
"I don't know what to tell you, except that there was definitely someone here."
Cwenhild pursed her lips as she took in Lex's statement. A list of scenarios went through her head, including someone sneaking on to punish or even assassinate her for giving up her family name. But it did not seem likely.
"I'll check out the building. Maybe we'll be able to discover what the person wanted."
Cwenhild nodded, and slowly followed Lex. There was too little information to start speculating, and should not cause her to start suspecting anyone, but it was a fact that the group following her all consisted of people she was paying. They followed her for the prestige and the reward, but considering their qualifications and caliber, none of them were people without sufficient backgrounds.
Despite the ongoing war, the politics between the various forces in the human race did not disappear. It became a lot more subtle, and hardly would anyone push things too far, but she was well aware of the cult-like following her father enjoyed.
Lex and Cwenhild swept the entire building but found nothing of note. They could see that over the years, multiple animals and beasts had turned these buildings into their nests, which, in turn, spoke volumes about the strength of these buildings. But that was it.
By the time they exited, the rest of the group was also catching up, Ness panting and completely drenched in yellow blood, but otherwise fine.
"Good job, you guys. Ness, Bearin and Tim, you guys take a rest in this building. Cindy, harvest anything useful from the Bloody Jit. The rest, look through all the buildings and see if you find anything useful. Report back here once you're done. After a short rest and some lunch, we'll move out."
The group dispersed as they went about to perform their tasks. None of them needed the rest, but the three combatants had exerted themselves and it was best to keep them in peak condition than continuously push them. Furthermore, had Lex not encountered the mysterious person, perhaps Cwenhild would have chosen to quickly look through the ruins before moving on. Now though, she preferred to be more cautious.
Lex noticed that she didn't pass on information about the intruder, but chose not to say anything. The ruins, despite all the promise of the Crystal race, held nothing too special. In the Bloody Jits nest they discovered a small pond of green liquid that apparently had phenomenal value. Since they could not transport it, the entire group took turns drinking from the pond directly. If Cwenhild was able to take control of this Minor realm, they would be able to access it as much as they wanted. Until then, though, it was best not to burden themselves by carrying flasks or waterskins full of the stuff.
When Lex drank it he felt his entire body heat up for a few minutes before returning to normal. Apparently, this liquid was excellent for cleansing meridians and helped boost cultivation speed. But soon, Lex, as well as the entire group, realized that the situation with Lex was unusual. Everyone, Cwenhild included, turned red from the rising body temperature and soon steam seemed to come out of their bodies.
No one commented on it, but the implications of the anomaly were shocking. It was quite simple: Lex's meridians were pure to such a level that the liquid could not provide him with any boost. Everyone quietly contemplated Lex's background, while Cwenhild wondered even more what this 'half-brother' of hers had encountered.
Other than the liquid they encountered a few more precious resources that would have otherwise caused the group to squeal, but considering their expectations from the ruins, it was somewhat disappointing.
Eventually, the group continued their journey, on towards the next set of ruins. As they ventured back into the forest, a figure appeared on the top of one of the buildings and looked at the group. Specifically, the figure stared at Lex. But, for now, that was all the figure did.
The trek through the forest this time was much easier. They were not attacked at all, and all beasts kept their distance. The reason was fairly simple. Ness reeked of the blood of an apex predator, and there was no beast that was aggressive to the point of being suicidal.
One time the group even spotted an extremely rare and precious plant in the territory of a tiger like beast. When they decided to take a risk for the plant because of how genuinely precious it was, the tiger actually ran away!
Lex made a mental note: use the blood of a strong beast to ward off attacks.
For the simple fact that they were no longer obstructed, the group's travel speed picked up and they soon found the next set of ruins, still within the forest. These ruins were bigger, with hundreds of buildings easily, and were simultaneously in a worse condition.
"Are we going to search through these as well?" Lex asked as he looked down at the buildings that had somehow become a part of the forest now. He and the group were looking down from the tip of a particularly long tree that gave them a clear sight over the surrounding area.
He had nothing against looking through the ruins, but it would take too long, and he still wanted to go towards the energy source behind the mountains. He didn't know if it was his imagination, but he felt the blue light behind the mountains had dimmed slightly.
"Patrick, scan the ruins. Are there any concentrated or high energy signatures?" said Cwenhild, prompting the man to take out his trusted beacon. But, before he got to use it, the group spotted hundreds of flashes of light across the Minor realm, spread far apart. At the same time, a massive current was formed in the spiritual energy of the realm, indicating that the realm had formed a permanent open door somewhere leading out of it.
The group immediately picked up on what this meant and turned to look at Cwenhild to see if she changed her orders. She was considering it.
She had not shared this information, but to take over a realm, she would need to find a focal point for the Minor realm. The artificially created Minor realms did not move through space, the way they did in the origin realm, but instead had an entirely different set of rulers governing them. One of those rulers was about the focal point.
A seemingly easy guess would be that the focal point of this Minor realm should be in the energy dense area behind the mountains, but that was not necessarily true as the...
"We're being attacked," Lex said, interrupting her thoughts. Before she could ask about, or even realize, the origin of the attack, he held out his hand and erected his barrier, just in time to intercept an entirely black arrow.