[Ding]
[Sub-quest completed!]
[Place Top 5 in the competition: 3/3]
[Rewards have been sent to your inventories!]
A timely message from the system interrupted the trios' attention. They immediately checked their inventory and saw the Random Lucky Bag occupied an inventory slot.
They decided to wait until they were back at the Zero Mansion to open the Lucky Bag. But right now, they placed their attention back on Inner Elder Maxim.
"The sect has spared no expense for this year's competition. The reward is not an item but rather a place. It is very beneficial for only those who are in the Natal Realm. Follow me and you'll soon find out." Inner Elder Maxim spoke with a smirk and led the group out of the arena.
After some time of walking, the group reached the deep-section area of the sect. It was almost deserted but breathtakingly quiet. The disciples considerably noticed the air was pure and the quality of the natural energy present was even pristine.
The five had no idea where they were and for a good reason too. Only Elders with sufficient permission and higher ups of the sect can freely enter this area of the sect.
Inner Elder Maxim noticed their confusion and briefly explained to them, "The Celestial Nirvana Sect can be considered a forbidden land to the outside world. Not because of the sect's fame and strength but due to the mystical and dangerous zones in the sect."
"That is why only the strong can venture here in this area. The place where you five will be going to is called the Miracle Bath. Thankfully, it's not a terrifying place for you five."
The five were instantly engrossed in his words, especially after hearing the words 'Miracle Bath'.
'Sounds cool…' Ray thought.
"As the name suggests, you have to dip your body into the pool of water. Why? Because it can help you Natal Realm cultivators open the next Apex Point. Even for cultivators with Red Stars, hence the Miracle part of the name."
Alice and Mason were extremely shocked. The other three were surprised at the latter part of the statement. For them, there was no such thing as a bottleneck, so they weren't as enthusiastic as the siblings.
"Elder Maxin, is it actually possible for me to open another Apex Point?" Alice asked in a trembling voice.
Inner Elder Maxin nodded and said, "There's a small chance but it is up to you whether you can get ahold of that possibility or not. In the end, it's up to your fate."
Alice didn't care as her eyes burned with ferocious determination. Mason was happy for her sister's newfound chance.
"That's not all. The Miracle Bath can also help you strengthen your body and something else. That something else is up to you to figure it out." Inner Elder Maxim vaguely briefed.
"Apart from the body…?" Ash muttered in contemplation.
"Hmm…" Ray tapped his chin.
Bryan didn't bother to think about it now. He'll do it when he's in the Miracle Bath.
Eventually, they reached before a gigantic azure cave. On the top of the cave, the words 'Miracle Bath' were carved into the cave. The words were glowing brightly in azure but they seemed to pulsate every now and then.
An inexplicable aura wafted out from the cave's entrance, making it all the more mysterious.
"Let's not waste any more time." Inner Elder Maxim led the group into the cave.
The cave wasn't as dark as Ray thought it would be. There was enough unexplainable light all around the cave for them to see ahead.
The cave tunnel was narrow but enough for all of them fit through. The tunnel came to an end and a wide spacious area was uncovered in their eyes.
There was nothing to note and it was almost barren apart from the one attractive pool of water placed in the center of the cave.
The trio immediately felt a huge concentration of natural energy attracting their body from the pool. They felt a cooling sensation and it made their body very comfortable just by standing in the vicinity. So, imagine the effects when they enter the pool.
There were stalactites hanging from the ceiling with droplets of water dripping into the pool of water right below it.
Along with that, a rainbow-coloured mist radiated from the pool, creating a beautiful scene in the dark cave. The water had a slight glow in it, displaying a mythical semblance.
"Beautiful…" Alice muttered with her eyes engrossed onto the pool.
"The Miracle Bath is beautiful indeed. You have two hours at most in the Miracle Bath. As soon your body is submerged in the bath, I'll start the timer. Whenever you five are ready, go and enjoy your rewards." Inner Elder Maxim explained some rules pertaining to the Miracle Bath.
"Elder Maxim, if I may ask, why is there a 2-hour limit?" Ray asked with a curious tone.
"It's done for your safety. Any longer and your bodies might not be able to handle the intensity of the Miracle Bath. It will lead to irreversible damage if you're not careful. That's why I'm here to monitor your safety." Inner Elder Maxim patiently answered and warned them.
"Thank you, Elder Maxim." Ray thanked the elder.
The five didn't waste any more time and hurried to the pool. Ash submerged himself into the pool along with the others and sat at the ground with only his head above the water.
The cooling sensation intensified in his body and he felt every single part of his body was trembling in excitement. The pool had a magical effect that automatically circulated the natural energy in his body, going through every single unlocked Apex Point in his body.
Ash could feel the strange energy in the pool merging with his natural energy. He kinda felt it was weird but since the system didn't say anything, he didn't do anything about it.
The strange energy accurately guided the natural energy in his body to the next Apex Point and since he was close to unlocking the 18th Apex Point, not a lot of time and energy was consumed before he was ready to unlock it.
A surge of Natural Energy burst forth from Ash and Bryan, unnoticed by the other three in the pool. Inner Elder Maxim was casually observing before his eyes widened in shock.
"So q-quick…?!" Inner Elder Maxim muttered and quickly regained his composure. The number of shocking events that he had witnessed today had slowly numbed his reaction.
"That means they were close to having a total of 18 Apex Points. Maybe if the competition was delayed by a day, we would have seen a three-way tie to the top." Inner Elder Maxim shook his head.
"I wonder if they can still unlock more…"
After a few several minutes, the commotion caused by the two died down and everything returned back to normal.
Ash and Bryan have successfully unlocked their 18th Apex Point but it was not over yet. There was still enough time in the pool to maybe unlock another one or at least come close to it.
[Name: Ash
Age: 17
Race: Human
Title: None
Cultivation Realm: Natal Realm (Apex Points - 18)
Energy Points: 5/2100
Bloodline: None
Physique: Heavenly Frost Physique
Element Affinities: None
Passive Skills: Heavenly Ice Body (1st Level), Heavenly Hailstorm (1st Level), Heavenly Frost Veins, Heavenly Ice Laws (Locked)
Skills: Hail Strike, Spirit-Grade Mirage Flow (1st Stage)]
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Name: Bryan
Age: 17
Race: Human
Title: None
Cultivation Realm: Natal Realm (Apex Points - 18)
Energy Points: 8/2100
Bloodline: None
Physique: Divine Infernal Physique
Element Affinities: None
Passive Skills: All-Fire Resistance (1st Level), All-Fire Boost (1st Level), Divine Infernal Veins, All-Fire Laws (Locked)
Skills: Gaze of Bane (1st Stage), Spirit-Grade Phantasmal Fists]
Ray noticed the commotion caused by his best friends and knew they had advanced one step further. He would congratulate them but right now, his attention was currently focused on the strange energy.
Although the strange energy was guiding and strengthening his natural energy as a whole, he faintly sensed a small amount of the strange energy enter into the depths of his mind.
Using the strange energy as a guiding force, he latched his senses on to it. What he saw next was beyond his understanding and extremely astonishingly confusing.
It was a complete dark space in the depths of his mind that seemed to have no finite distance. The end could not be seen nor could be fathomed.
But, in the midst of the dark space, a bright white silhouette of a middle-aged man hovered with no signs of movement. No visible features could be seen nor distinguished; all Ray could see was the white silhouette.
'What the fuck is going on here!' Ray was mind-boggled. He suddenly could feel his body and looked down to see a phantasmal figure of his own body floating about in the dark space.
'What the fuck…'
'Well, at least this makes it easier for me to explore.' Ray stretched his hand even though it didn't matter much in this space.
'But who the fuck is this guy?!' Ray was cautious and on alert. He was feeling disturbed because not every day you see a silhouette of a middle-aged man in the depths of your mind. It was definitely an uncanny experience.
Ray calmed down his nerved and thought carefully, 'I don't think anything will happen to me since it's in me…'
Ray carefully approached the silhouette and observed it closely. He could not figure anything out. He stretched his hand to touch 'it' but before he could even get close, a repulsive force emanated from the dark space that threw his phantasmal body out of the dark space and broke off his inner sense.
Ray opened his eyes to see that he was still in the pool and noted that both Ash and Bryan's eyes simultaneously opened. They all looked at each other, and somehow understood that it happened to all three of them.
'Is this the other aspect of strengthening that the elder was talking about?'
'Ahhh, I'll wait and asked the elder later.' Ray closed his eyes and immersed himself into the cooling sensation.
-Somewhere on a tall snowy mountain-
The Ancient Elder, the Sect Master and Supreme Elder Drake were having a hearty conversation in a small abode.
"Ancient Elder, it seems like your era is soon going to be overshadowed." Supreme Elder Drake said with a smile.
"Hahaha, of course. It was about time anyways, not to mention the coming of the Great Age." The Ancient Elder chuckled before sipping on a cup of tea.
"The fact that three of them have opened 17 and 18 Apex Points with the potential of unlocking even more makes me feel content as the Sect Master." The Sect Master smiled in content.
"Brat, you better not be thinking of handing down your position to them!" The Ancient Elder glared at his son.
"Haha, of course I wouldn't do that, dad." The Sect Master chuckled nervously.
"Good! Because I have a feeling that they won't be shackled in our galaxy. Not to mention, you have the other Prime Disciples as a prime candidate."
*Cough*
Supreme Elder Drake lightly coughed to get their attention. Both the Ancient Elder and the Sect Master looked at him to continue.
Supreme Elder Drake smiled and said, "I've just been informed by Elder Maxim. Ash and Bryan have both successfully unlocked their 18th Apex Point."
Although he was casually informing them, there were waves of shock smashing into his heart.
"Oh…" The Ancient Elder's eyes shone with intense brilliance.
"…" The Sect Master was speechless.
"It hasn't been an hour yet and the two of have already unlocked another one?" The Ancient Elder caressed his beard.
"Ancient Elder, you have to assign them a title, worthy enough to spread their fame to every single corner of this world." Supreme Elder Drake suggested.
"They're actual monsters…" The Sect Master shook his head in astonishment.
"A worthy title huh…" The Ancient Elder smiled.