--- Chapter 26 ---
"Dragon God..."
Hayate gradually frowned when hearing Jasmine's words. He glanced at the azure eyes and wondered about something.
Jasmine stared at the azure eyes with stupefied looks because Dragon God does not exist anymore.
According to Primal Chaos's history, every true god perished in the Era of the Gods. Including the Primordial Azure Dragon.
Primordial Azure Dragon (aka Dragon God) was the head of the various Divine Beasts and the leader of the Dragon God Clan. He was one of the strongest beings behind Creation Gods.
Jasmine was suspicious already of Blue Polar Star's connection with Evil God. Not only was there Evil God's fire seed in such a random place, but even Phoenix Trials Ground also remained here.
Now even Dragon God Trials Ground was also revealed to them.
'It's not a coincidence.' She firmly believed.
Hayate glanced at the cave entrance and commented, "I see..."
"You were the reason why those two flying snakes guarded this place."
"I always sensed an odd sensation when entering the Wasteland of Death, which caused my body to shiver."
Hayate's Kaiju Creation was always sensitive to dangerous creatures' aura.
He could tell something was observing him from afar when stepping into the Phoenix clan's compound a month ago.
"You said you could help me, right?" He questioned calmly.
"Yes." Dragon God answered without hesitation.
Hayate gently placed Chu Yuechan and Little Ghost on the cave floor. "I can heal them easily by myself, but let's hear your solution." He added while crossing his arms.
Dragon God blinked and replied, "First, you have to go through my trials."
"After you finished trials and gained six drops of my blood, you could produce Virgin Dragon Seed."
"It could heal them, but you need to perform se-,"
"No, I won't do it." Hayate put on an annoyed expression.
"Did you really just tell me to ravish them while they are unconscious?"
He sighed and continued, "Wow, What a freaking brilliant idea... You sick dragon."
Hayate released [Mystic Art of Body Cultivation] and overridden his body with everlasting vigor. A faint white light appeared on his palm and flowed to Chu Yuechan and Little Ghost's bodies.
"H-How...??" Dragon God's eyes widened in amazement.
There was a True God who possessed gentle [Light Profound Strength] for healing in the Primordial Era. The one of Four Creation Gods, Li Suo.
Li Suo is the origin of [Light Profound Strength] and the creator of innumerable Star Realms, Races, Lives.
Even though Li Suo was the weakest Creation God, She was the most respected by the people of that era.
Hayate, who comprehended [Titleless Medical Book] created by Li Suo, indirectly became her inheritor.
Unfortunately, it was imperfect knowledge because the book possessed only half of Li Suo's legacy.
Since [Mystic Art of Body Cultivation] was created based on [Titleless Medical Book]'s knowledge, Hayate unknowingly cultivated Light Profound Strength.
After a few minutes, Chu Yuechan released a faint groan and opened her eyes. She wasn't fully conscious yet, but Hayate's silhouette entered her blurry sight.
"W-Who...?" Chu Yuechan felt warm energy wash inside her body.
Hayate placed his finger on her lips and replied, "Don't talk, and go back to your sleep."
Chu Yuechan closed her eyes again and entered a dream where an imaginary person saved her life.
As Hayate treated Chu Yuechan and Little Ghost without any problem, Dragon God could only watch in silence. He admitted that [Light Profound Energy] is better for recovery than Virgin Dragon Seed.
'To think he'd be Li Suo's inheritor.' Dragon God sighed inside because he thought this young man could finally pass on his lineage.
"Done," Hayate commented and moved his gaze back at Dragon God.
"Now for you, let's talk about your trials."
Dragon God's eyes became dim because he could clearly sense Hayate's hostility, but it was too late to fix the first impression.
"I'll excuse myself and say sorry."
"Who would have thought you're also Li Suo's inheritor."
"Li Suo?" Hayate tilted his head in confusion.
"Who's that?"
Dragon God noticed Hayate's weird reaction and guessed, "Do you perhaps not know about your [Light Profound Strength]?"
"The ability you used before proved that you learned the Miracle of Life."
(An: Miracle of Life is the official name for [Titleless Medical Book])
"Huh?" Hayate became even more confused.
Dragon God's eyes approached Hayate and continued, "You don't know?"
"Miracle of Life is a divine scripture written by the Creation God Li Suo after referencing the life inscriptions in the [Primordial Seal of Life & Death] for millions of years."
Hayate peeked into his spatial ring and whispered, "Divine scripture..."
Jasmine actually was the one who was shocked the most by this news. She gazed at Hayate like he was a sort of strange life form.
Divine Scripture is not an ordinary piece of literature one could easily comprehend. It was profound and incredibly challenging to decipher with words.
Jasmine interrogated Hayate in the past and knew his medical skill better than anyone else.
She also learned that he was self-taught by reading books and even created his own profound art.
'You jerk, you're not normal at all!' Jasmine yelled while throwing a pillow onto her bed in Sky Poison Realm.
Hayate closed his eyes to collect every piece of information efficiently.
There are still unresolved questions in his mind, which Hayate is required to know because he might be able to find the other half of [Titleless Medical Book], or more precisely [Miracle of Life] according to the Dragon God.
"Can you tell me more about the Miracle of Life?" Hayate opened his eyes.
Dragon God realized this chance and replied, "Hmm, what should I do?"
"I can tell you right away, but I don't want to."
"I'll let you know more when you complete my trials."
Hayate's mouth twitched in annoyance because Dragon God clearly baited him. He could have asked Jasmine, but even she doesn't live in the Primordial Era like Dragon God.
"Fine." He responded with a sigh.
"I'll do your trials."
Dragon God chuckled and declared, "Well, I'm hoping for great things from you, Li Suo and Evil God's inheritor."
"Ah, a reminder from me..."
"If you keep those two on your side, the trials' difficulty will be increased."
Hayate ignored Dragon God and summoned [Storm Zinogre] to protect Chu Yuechan and Little Ghost.
Storm Zinogre is a quadrupedal monster with superficially lupine features. It has highly developed limbs, sharp fangs, and claws. Its forelegs are extremely powerful and can kill prey in one brutal blow. Wind and lightning danced around its body like armor.
Despite Storm Zinogre's hulking size, this kaiju is very agile and can perform many impressive aerial and land-based maneuvers.
"Oh, Land Dragon, maybe Wolf?" Dragon God's eyes shone with great interest.
"From where did you summon such a creature?"
Hayate summoned [Three-Eyed Tigrex] too and assigned the same thing.
Dragon God observed the [Three-Eyed Tigrex] and continued curiously, "Hmm, a tiger with draconic characteristics?"
Hayate brought out a refined steel spear and said, "Let's start."
Dragon God became more interested in Hayate because he wasn't just lucky for being Li Suo and Evil God's inheritor.
"First Trial, Stone Dragon Warriors."
As Dragon God's voice echoed in the cave, a creature appeared in front of Hayate.
Stone Dragon Warrior is a being with a body that is no different from an average person yet seems carved of stone. It looked unbelievably firm with heads that looked half-human and half-dragon.
"1st stage of Sky Profound Realm, huh."
Hayate rushed his profound energy and clenched his hand around the spear shaft.
BAM!
When Stone Dragon Warrior was about to swing its weapon at Hayate, he blew up its upper body with a powerful spear throw.
"One..." He counted while pulling the spear back with a thin string.
In Dragon God's first trial, one has to go through ten waves and kill nine waves of Stone Dragon Warriors, which get multiplied by two each wave.
Hayate moved his gaze to the other Stone Dragon Warriors and ran toward them with his spear.
BAM! BAM! BAM!
Stone Dragon Warriors attacked Hayate with their weapons, but he dodged every single one of them with no effort.
"Two, three, and four..."
Hayate skillfully slashed Stone Dragon Warriors' head with his spear. He briefly checked Chu Yuechan and Little Ghost's condition and nodded his head.
[Storm Zinogre] and [Three-Eyed Tigrex] protected them seriously.
Another wave of Stone Dragon Warriors appeared, and the number multiplied by two, which means Hayate now had eight enemies pointing their weapons at him.
They are also slightly more robust than the first wave.
"Broken Spear Manual." Hayate's golden eyes shone with a unique sharpness.
"Torrential Rain."
At first, palm-sized energy escaped Hayate's spear and exploded into delicate small spears, raining Stone Dragon Warriors into an oppressive position.
Hayate swiftly moved and launched another rain to restrict their movements.
He doesn't let Stone Dragon Warriors take a single step and destroys them one by one slowly.
"Five."
"Six."
"Seven."
"Eight."
Hayate improved Torrential Rain intensity by adding more profound energy and concentrating it on the remaining Stone Dragon Warriors.
BOOM!
"That's 12 in total."
Dragon God won't let him take a breather and summoned the third wave, where 16 Stone Dragon Warriors appeared with more formidable strengths.
Since Hayate didn't know how many waves were left, he decided to save half of his profound energy for later. He used the same strategy and kept Stone Dragon Warriors under Torrential Rains.
Crack!
A Stone Dragon Warrior escaped and moved to Chu Yuechan.
AUUU!
Storm Zinogre howled and ripped the incoming enemy with its sharp claws.
Hayate smirked outside as his kaiju obeyed his instruction but frowned inside because one enemy escaped from his technique.
"Calm down," He whispered to himself.
"I'm not in a disadvantageous position yet. I can still fight for a few months."
He finished the third wave in 5 minutes and calmed his nerves slightly. His body was still warm because it was not over yet.
"Fourth Wave." He glanced at 32 new Stone Dragon Warriors.
Hayate used phoenix flame to cover his spearhead and shifted the incoming sword slash away.
CLANK!
A clashing metal noise echoed in the trial ground.
Crack!
Hayate's spear abruptly was crushed by Stone Dragon Warrior's sword. He used what it left and stabbed Stone Dragon Warrior's abdomen.
BOOM!
A residual phoenix flame demolished Stone Dragon Warrior's upper body.
"29."
Hayate tilted his head because a stone spear was about to reach him. "That was close." He commented while raising his right leg.
"Flamingo."
He bashed Stone Dragon Warrior's neck with a powerful kick and picked the stone spear.
"30."
The other Stone Dragon Warrior stepped forward and crowded Hayate with their attacks. A few archers also aimed their arrows at him, making aerial movement hard for him.
"Falling Moon Sinking Star..."
Inside Hayate's Myriad Genesis Veins appeared seven imprints similar to profound entrances, aligned in the arrangement of the Seven Stars of the Ursa Major.
Those imprints are actually utilized to activate the Seven Realms of Evil God's Secret Arts: The Seven Gates and their corresponding Profound Skills.
BOOM!
A small-scaled blast arose and swept Stone Dragon Warriors around Hayate, destroying some of them.
He walked past Stone Dragon Warriors and watched them crumble into dust.
Swoosh!
"No, you don't." He threw the stone spear at the archers.
Crack! BOOM!
Phoenix Flame exploded when having contact with Stone Dragon Archers.
"Fifth Wave..." Hayate released a sigh.
He kept attacking Stone Dragon Warriors and proceeded to the 7th wave. Even though the number reached 512, he could still handle them without any problem.
Crack!
Hayate defeated the last Stone Dragon Warrior of the 7th wave with a shattered rock spear.
'If you keep doing this, your stamina will run out faster.' Jasmine commented calmly.
'Use your profound energy efficiently.'
"Silence, Jasmine," Hayate replied while wiping sweat off his forehead.
Jasmine's mouth twitched in annoyance, and she shouted, 'You! How dare you! This princess won't help you anymore, you jerk!'
The 8th wave began, and over a thousand Stone Dragon Warriors appeared around Hayate.
Jasmine couldn't understand why Hayate always refused her advice and declined to become her disciple. It wasn't a bad thing and even beneficial for the long run, but no.
Hayate is a stubborn guy with never-ending confidence. The annoying jerk who doesn't like his pride getting crushed by anyone.
"1024..." Hayate watched over a thousand Sky Profound Realm enemies approaching him.
"I don't want to waste my stamina by using [Hercules], but faster is better than prolonging the fight for too long."
Dragon God sensed energy similar to [Rage God] appeared inside Hayate's body. He observed his transformation with a curious pair of eyes.
Hayate summoned Flesh Edge and made a synergy between [Hercules] and [Mystic Art of Body Cultivation], enhancing his strength a few folds.
He could fight the 4th stage of Sky Profound Realm cultivator with his base form alone, but with Evil God, Hercules, and his profound arts. Even the 5th stage of Emperor Profound Realm couldn't win against him.
CLANK!
Flesh Edge gradually fell onto the ground and released a clunking noise.
"Sky Fissure."
Sky Fissure is a technique to cause pure destruction by compressing profound energy and battle intent into a shockwave. However, not only that.
Hayate developed a technique based on one of Hercules's labors two years ago. He couldn't test to the extreme because the scales were too massive to recover.
It could destroy an entire mountain in one strike and even kill the middle stage of the Emperor Profound Realm cultivators. Unfortunately, it is only possible when Hayate uses [Hercules]'s core.
ROAR!
An enormous serpent-like creature appeared in energy form and roared arrogantly at Stone Dragon Warriors.
"Chase them, Hydra!"