After making sure Adrian was doing okay, the group of 5 young cultivators dashed towards the castle's entrance.
The closer they got to the castle, the more amazed they felt from it. The light red walls had extremely detailed engravings of what looked like soldiers fighting in battle. Although the passage of time had slightly dulled its beauty. Two massive wooden doors, large enough for a giant to easily walk through, acted as the entrance to the castle.
"Mason…would you like to do the honours?" Yera pointed at the large double doors. Mason was their team leader and the one who predicted that the tomb would be here, so it was only right for him to be the first to enter.
Mason nodded gratefully at Yera and made his way to the entrance. He took a deep breath to calm his frantically beating heart and placed his hands on the wooden door.
*Bwam!*
Mason's body suddenly catapulted back, flying over Yera and the others. He crashed hard against the ground and spat out a mouthful of blood.
"Mason!"
Yera, Dawn and Trent rushed to Mason and helped him up to his feet.
"Mason, what happened?" Dawn asked while holding him up.
"Sigh… there seems to be a powerful seal protecting the castle. I didn't want to do this, but it seems that we have to let the higher-ups know…"
––––
"This is the second time I'm carrying you, you know. Aren't you afraid that people might think you're weak?"
"You said it yourself. I like my woman straightforward and assertive, and what's more assertive than carrying your man through a treacherous mountain range."
Vasari laughed out loud and of course didn't forget to tease and pinch Hiromi's cheeks the same way she does to him.
Hiromi was carrying Vasari to the massive castle she spotted not long ago. They would've left sooner, but Vasari felt like resting on a legendary thigh pillow. She acquiesced to his wants and happily supplied the thighs for him to rest his head on.
"Tsk, you're really a pain in the ass when you're injured."
"Hehe."
Slowly but surely, Hiromi and Vasari made their way to the castle. Only now Hiromi realised how far Vasari had run before the shockwave hit him. He practically ran halfway up the 15th mountain before coming to a stop.
She had to carry this lazy man-child on her back for half a day before arriving outside the entrance of the castle.
"Oh, you're still alive." Was the first thing Mason said when he saw the approaching duo.
"Gee, what a warm welcome." Hiromi scoffed before looking around, "Why are you all just standing around? Are you waiting for something?"
Mason sighed and scratched the back of his head in irritation, "We have to decide who has to leave and tell our superiors about the tomb while the others stay behind to guard it."
The reason for his irritation was that nobody wanted to go on the long trek back to their base of operations. All their bodies were tired and sore, all they wanted now was just a few days of rest.
Mason looked at Vasari who was standing behind Hiromi and then glanced at the 3 girls to his side who all had infatuated gazes when they stared at him, even Dawn who he had a small crush on.
"Why don't the three of you go and take Adrian with you, while Trent and myself keep watch over here." He suggested and immediately the girls furrowed their brows and creased their foreheads.
"Why?" Allison asked the question that was on their minds.
"Because you three are the least injured and also the most balanced team if you do run into any beasts." His argument was logical and hard to argue against, but this only made the girls more frustrated.
In the end, after many pointless arguments and a few cusses being thrown around (mostly by Allison), the girls made their way out of the Draynora Mountain Range with an unconscious Adrian in tow.
"I'm sorry but I can't let you two leave. I can't have you potentially leaking this information to the whole world." Mason said with the utmost seriousness as he looked at Vasari, who he was highly suspicious of. He still remembered how easily Vasari wielded his spear. Not many knew about it, but Mason's family spear is only able to be wielded by people who met specific conditions.
One of the conditions was that the cultivator had to have a Sky-grade Physique or above.
Like most things in the cultivation world, Physiques could be categorised into different grades and ranks. Although Physiques are undoubtedly rare, some Physiques are rarer or better than others, so cultivators came up with grades to differentiate them.
The lowest grade in Physiques was spirit grade. Although it was the lowest-grade Physique, only 1 in 1 000 000 people were lucky enough to be born with one.
The next grade following the spirit grade was the Sky grade. On average 1 in every 100 000 000 people would be born with a Sky grade physique.
The last 2 grades were known as Empyrean grade and Divine grade. These 2 grades are impossible to determine the probability of someone being born with it. It would be a miracle if ten humans were born with an Empyrean-grade Physique within 25 years.
Divine grade Physiques is a different story altogether. Hundreds of years could pass without a single Divine grade Physique being born, and that's being generous. Usually, it could take a thousand years until a Divine grade Physique made an appearance.
"Uhm, but don't you think people would notice the huge explosion and the fact that the 16th mountain has been replaced by a giant red castle?" Hiromi was truly shocked at this guys thinking, but Mason already thought of a reply.
"That's the real reason why I need you here. I need your help with keeping people away from the area. If you help me, I promise to put in a good word to the Archbishop. You might even have the chance to immigrate to our planet."
Hiromi's eyes lit up when the prospect of moving to a larger and better planet, but she couldn't make this decision on her own. After all, she had a mother and sister who she loved dearly, and now she also had another who occupied a large plot of land in her heart.
While she was thinking about what to do, Vasari answered for her.
"Sure, we don't mind lending a hand. We have nothing better to do anyway." Vasari had no reason to reject his offer since it would bring him closer to Joanna Mota quicker. She would be coming to him instead of wasting time searching for her.
"Great! Okay then, Trent and I will guard the North and West while you two guard the South and East. We will swap every 12 hours until the girls arrive."
"Sounds good to me. Hiromi, what do you think?" Hiromi had no qualms with the plan, so she hummed in agreement.
So with everyone clear on the plans, they set out to perform it. Vasari, Hiromi, Mason and Trent guarded the castles as if they were expertly trained royal guards. Whoever came close was immediately chased away and those who tried to approach despite their warnings were promptly put in their place. A few broken bones were all they received if they were lucky.
They guarded the castle for 12 days before the girls came back with other members of the Church of Prasufis.
Besides the 3 girls, there were 20 others with them and in the lead was one of the most well-known and respected followers of Prasufis in the entire church, Archbishop Joanna Mota!
Mason and Trent didn't expect her to come directly to the castle. They thought she would send a few people to verify if it was true or not, but never would they have imagined this.
Mason, Trent and Hiromi watched as the approaching group of 20 marvelled at the mountain-sized castle.
"I must admit that I didn't believe you at first, but I'm glad to be proven wrong. This is truly magnificent." Archbishop Joanna Mota couldn't take her eyes off the castle and enjoyed the feeling of the castle's ancient aura washing over her.
"You said there's something like a seal preventing you from entering, correct?"
"Yes, Archbishop. It also repels you when you try to use force."
"Hmm…"
Archbishop Joanna Mota placed her soft palm under her chin as she continued walking to the entrance of the castle; she was in deep thought and interested in this 'seal'. Thousands of theories and possibilities raced through her head with every step she took. Her cultivation and mental energies were so deep and powerful that in just a matter of seconds, she was able to come up with 3000 possible seals that could be placed on the castle.
"Greetings, Archbishop. May Prasufis lead you to salvation."
"Greetings, Archbishop. May Prasufis lead you to salvation."
Mason and Trent bowed 90 degrees as they greeted Archbishop Joanna Mota, who nodded in response.
"You must be the leader of the team who found this castle, correct?"
"Yes, Archbishop."
"Well done. You and your team will be rewarded handsomely for your efforts."
"Thank you, Archbishop."
Mason, Trent and the 3 girls standing behind Joanna Mota and her entourage struggled to contain their smiles. This is what they risked their lives for!
Archbishop Joanna Mota approached the castle's entrance and placed her hand on the large wooden door.
Three loud humming sounds resounded one after the other throughout the mountain range. The humming was so loud that those on the opposite side of the planet could faintly hear the three hums.
Archbishop Joanna Mota stood with her hand placed on the door for a further 5 minutes before she backed away.
"Sigh…it's seams breaking the formation protecting this castle won't be an easy task. Gather all of the members currently on the planet here. I want everyone to be here in less than 3 weeks, or they will receive strict punishment." She ordered and the 19 followers bowed their heads before disappearing.
"Now…while we wait, why don't you tell me how you f-" Archbishop Joanna Mota's words got stuck in her throat when the most gorgeous, the most handsome, the most divine man walked into her sight. He had a charming, confident smile that seemed to light up his surroundings, and his laid-back yet domineering presence was deadly attractive to the opposite sex.
'Has the almighty Prasufis heard my prayers and gifted me the perfect man to replace my late husband?'
It was like love at first sight for this once-heartbroken widow. She, who hasn't felt the love of a significant other for over 20 000 years, finally felt that once ever-present emotion wiggle back into her feelings once again.
When she was a youth, she always mocked her friends when they said they found love at first sight and constantly crushed on males just because they had a handsome appearance. But now here she was, speechless due to the appearance of a youth no more than 20 years old.
'Maybe I'm getting a bit too desperate…'