"The Hidden Ruins" are the remnants of an ancient civilization that dates back hundreds of years, whose inhabitants were at the height of their power and development. However, like any civilization, no matter how great its achievements, it could not withstand the ravages of time, which spares no one.
For an unknown reason, the land of this mysterious kingdom disappeared from the face of the world of Altenia. From time to time, gates appear in different places connected to the lands of the lost kingdom, known as the "Hidden Ruins."
From the center of the gate, it was possible to see a different natural landscape from the rocks and stones around them. Arfi's excitement was evident on his face.
"The Hidden Ruins Gate, the information confirms the existence of a treasure there. If we're lucky, we might find a sacred weapon."
Artcia intervened so as not to exaggerate in raising his hopes, "Don't get too excited. We haven't found anything yet."
"Artcia, why do you constantly discourage me? Everyone considers me the weakest member because of my defensive soul entity."
Artcia did not speak a word and simply jumped into the gate, followed immediately by the young man. The two found themselves in a vast green area free of buildings.
Arfi took out a compass and, as soon as he charged it with his power, it began to rotate until it finally stopped to the east. The two headed east and eventually reached an empty area. Arfi scratched his head as he turned around.
"This is the place, but there's nothing here. Should we dig?"
"It's a kind of illusion magic, but it has weakened with time. Just close your eyes and try to seal your spiritual energy, then allow your body and senses to accept the magical energy."
Arfi did everything he heard, and in the end, he took a long breath and slowly opened his eyes to find everything around him had changed. The green spaces had turned into the ruins of an ancient city, and the place that the compass pointed to was a tomb.
Arfi rushed forward to push aside the stone coffin lid, which was covered in layers of dust and spider webs. With some effort, the lid moved and fell loudly to the ground.
Neither the dust nor the smell of the body could extinguish Arfi's eyes, which were full of joy. He had finally found what he was looking for, ignoring the books and tools inside the coffin, he pulled the sword from the grasp of the corpse and began to examine it.
"A physical spiritual sword with the law of lightning. I am no longer the weakest member." Artesia looked closely at the sword and said, "A physical spiritual weapon, using it may not be a good idea."
Some fighters from the ancestors and at a certain stage of spiritual enlightenment were able to transform the form of their souls into weapons, from their energetic form to a tangible physical weapon, retaining their power and laws.
These weapons were known as physical spiritual weapons and were extremely rare, unlike sacred weapons that were only used by those experienced in martial arts.
"This weapon is the dream of any ordinary person without a soul entity, but the same cannot be said for a spiritual fighter, as even a weapon with such power has its drawbacks. Being a spiritual weapon for someone else has a negative effect on their soul entity. Arfi knows this more than anyone else, but he has not found any other solution.
The strong and the weak, those who can stand against the strongest fighters and repel their attacks, and those who are unable to defeat the weakest opponents, the material spiritual weapon is their only hope for advancement.
At first, Arfi wanted a sacred weapon to use alongside his defensive barrier, but now he is considering merging his soul entity with the material spiritual weapon, which is extremely dangerous.
Owners of free-entity weapons will do the impossible and pay anything to obtain a material weapon that matches their entity. If the integration process succeeds, they will be able to activate the laws of the material weapon and train early before entering the world of the law.
But the risk remains and increases as the difference between the weapon and the entity increases. Arfi still had some fears in his heart, so he spoke aloud to encourage himself.
"Do I have a choice? Relying on defense will always put me at the back of the pack, If I don't get a weapon for attack."
"I'll adjust my soul entity. I'll take the sword, and as we agreed, the rest of the treasures are yours."
What remained in the coffin were three books, energy pills, and wooden beads. These tools can be sold for a good sum of money, but the value of the books will depend on their contents.
While Artecia was busy evaluating the tools, Arfi was focused on his new weapon, and it seems he's getting used to it quickly. "Ah, there's a problem. I can't stick to the previous agreement since the agreement was with my partner Artecia, not you."
The girl stopped browsing the books and stepped back a few steps.
"So you found out quickly, which is expected, as usual, I need more time to study the personality of the person I will disguise myself as. Let me guess, your friend knows nothing about the illusion magic."
He loosened his grip on the sword and watched curiously as the disguised body of his friend shrank and white smoke emerged from his body, revealing a young man with hair as white as snow.
"That's true,"
"My colleague had a bad experience with magic. I hope you didn't harm her."
"She's fine."
"I used a magic circle to transport her to the edge of the forest, but who knows what could happen to a girl alone in the woods. You should hurry back to her."
"You're really brave,"
"You're still calm even in a situation like this. But it doesn't matter. I'll make sure you pay the price."
"It's not about bravery. I just don't see someone who disdains the power of their soul entity as my opponent"
"You scoundrel!" Arfi waved his sword towards Jin, who leaned back to avoid the blow and jumped back a step, but Arfi followed him quickly and attacked again, cutting through the air.
Fortunately, Jin's skill ,the Autumn Leaf technique, gave him the advantage in defense and allowed him to maneuver, but it wasn't that easy since his opponent was from the world of soul and using a weapon. If Arfi had been more familiar with the sword, the situation would have been much more dangerous.
'This isn't good for me. I'll try something else.'
*Takh*
small stone hit Arfi on the head.
"As I expected, you are unable to use your spiritual shield and physical sword at the same time"
Arfi rubbed his forehead where he was hit by the stones and smirked.
"All you have is good defensive skills. Let's see how long you can keep running away from me."
He gripped the sword with both hands and raised it high, attacking with all his might.
*Bam!* A punch exploded on Arfi's nose, forcing him to step back.
"I didn't learn this skill for maneuvering, but to sharpen my senses to the point where I can see things slower than reality"
Arfi shouted and swung his sword again.
*Bam! Bam!*
Two punches exploded on Arfi's body, one on his ribs and the other on his head. The punches were so fast that he felt them at the same time.
Arfi staggered a little, but he just shook his head and gritted his teeth. Those punches only increased his anger.
Jin's grip was completely numbed, His opponent's body was so hard, the body often takes the characteristics of its soul entity, and the latter's body was as hard as his shield.
Jin sighed and shook his hands, which had become numb.
'Fighting with bare hands is not good for me. Now I'm already in a bad position and will have to kill him.'
Jin didn't plan to kill the poor youth, so he didn't bring any weapons, but now he was seriously considering it. Although he was in a difficult situation, fighting and killing were two completely different things in Jin's view.
In killing, all he needed was one blow at the right moment and place, and he would end his enemy's life. With Arfi's poor sword skills, he wouldn't need more than one blow. Jin decided to get rid of him.
As Jin was about to use his weapon, suddenly the physical sword flashed, emitting a lightning-like formation and releasing several lightning bolts. Arfi, whose sword had become more powerful, looked at his opponent with contempt.
"Hey kid, it seems your luck has run out. The battle is over."