Chapter 30: Next Trial
Meanwhile
"Sir, should we check the cave?" one of the merchants inquired from the head merchant with a worried look.
"Hmm… Let's just wait for them." the head merchant pondered and responded.
"But Sir-"
"Don't worry. Haven't you seen their strength already? They can handle themselves in case of any trouble. If we go inside and get in trouble, we might become a burden to them. So, just wait patiently for their return." He tried to console the other merchants and added some sticks to the campfire, which burned brightly, illuminating the dark night and providing warmth.
"Yes Sir." they nodded their head, exchanging glances with each other.
They finished their meal and prepared to take a nap while ordering the mercenaries to guard the place.
"Let's hope they return till morning." the head merchant lightly whispered while gazing at the entrance of the cave.
The cave was as gloomy and dark as the night with no light inside.
Trial Chamber
"Uhhh…" I groggily opened my eyes, slowly waking up from my sleep.
The memories of the previous battle flashed through my mind and I quickly examined my body.
The excruciating pain was gone and other wounds were also healed completely. Even the mental fatigue and tiredness were gone. My mind felt fresh, active, and refreshing and my body felt healthy. I felt very shocked at first witnessing this amazing recovery. But I also felt a bit different than usual in my body.
"Status"
[Name: Loki GrimHeart]
[Age: 15]
[Physique: Deceiving Heaven Physique(+)]
[Tier: Rare]
[Rank: high-silver]
[Affinities: Order, Creation, Yin, Yang]
[Arts]
[Grimheart Reinforcement Sutra]
[Grimheart Eden Manipulation Sutra]
[Life-Severing Sword Art]
[Skills]
[Healing Touch]
[Divine Heal]
[Aegis of Life]
[Sensory Field]
[Blinding Light]
[Flame Pillar]
[Shadow Swap]
[...]
[...]
[Abilities]
[Inspect: Host can observe other's status.]
[Fool's gaze: Host can copy the target's ability, skills, affinities, or items after the copied conditions are met or if you defeat him.]
[Deceit Robe: Host can negate any mental or spiritual ability attacks.]
[...]
[...]
Hmm?!
"What's that plus icon beside my physique?" I pressed on the plus icon and a new interface appeared.
[Ding! Host absorbed a SoulBlood…]
[Merging SoulBlood with Host's physique…]
[Merging Successful…]
[New Abilities Unlocked…]
[Deceiving Heaven Physique: A powerful physique that could quite literally deceive the heavens. ]
Abilities:
Shrouding Heaven: Immune to any divinations and fate-related skills.
Divine Deception: Acquire other physique's abilities using their soulblood.
Heavenly Disguise: Transform into any being using their source blood.
Nature's Chosen: Significantly increased affinity with nature; wood element unlocked.
Boundless Vitality: Near-infinite vitality, capable of recovering from any physical or spiritual injuries.
[...]
Huh?!
A huge question mark appeared above my head as I scrolled through the new system notification.
"This… How?" I struggled to understand the current situation. These new abilities that I've unlocked is due to the absorption of a SoulBlood. And from my deduction, This SoulBlood should probably have belonged to Athena. But, Why did she let me absorb her SoulBlood? And more importantly, how did I absorb her SoulBlood?
"Uhh…How did it come to this?" I questioned with utter confusion in my voice.
"Let's calm down and inquire about it from the said person aka Athena directly." I took a deep breath, cleared the useless thoughts, and stood up.
I silently observed my surroundings and noticed Athena sleeping peacefully beside me.
"How beautiful." Her peaceful expression was quite lethal for Loki's heart.
He approached her and carefully examined her with disturbing her sleep.
"Hmm… Her physical injuries are almost healed but the problem is her spiritual injuries." Loki muttered with a solemn face, he felt quite guilty upon finding that she had injured herself just for him.
He slowly brushed her hair and whispered 'Thank you'.
He brought out some essence healing potions from his ring and applied them to her body. These potions reduce spiritual pain and provide relief to their mind.
A few minutes later, Athena also slowly opened her eyes and gazed around.
She found Loki beside her, He was already up and was applying some potions to her.
Athena jolted her body and stood up. A faint blush appeared on her face as her memories flashed in her mind.
"Umm... I was just applying some potions to ease your pain." Loki clarified his intention as he misunderstood her expression.
"I'm fine," she remarked. Her thought process and basic muscle movement felt quite slow. She felt the aftereffects of her injuries but she just shrugged it off.
"Athena, Thank you." They exchanged glances and Loki wholeheartedly thanked her.
"Mmm." no words came out of her lips, she just looked the other way and nodded her head.
"By the way, How did I absorb your SoulBlood?" Loki curiously inquired from her.
Her face tinged with a shade of crimson as she ignored his question and approached the ancient gate.
Loki got quite curious but he suppressed his curiosity and followed behind her.
He remembered the message provided by Arun before its defeat.
"Athena, Arun mentioned that our next trial is behind this gate. Should we enter or Do we wait until you're healed?" Loki voiced his concerns to her. He wanted to heal her but injuries related to the soul are very difficult to heal and he didn't have the proper skills too.
Athena pondered a bit and responded.
" The next trial is probably not something related to battle. Since the first trial was Trail of Strength, other trials should focus on different aspects of the challenger. Let's wait for a while and then enter."
She suggested, Loki nodded his head and brought out some meals. They were quite hungry after an intense battle so they quickly devoured their meal and planned some strategies for the upcoming trial.
Loki and Athena both shared their knowledge regarding trials.
Trials were set up by powerful individuals of the past to find some worthy inheritors for their legacy. Most of them were very dangerous but also equally rewarding.
There were some tales of random individuals stumbling upon a trial and becoming powerful overnight. Though some of them were just baseless rumors. This doesn't change the fact that trials were very rewarding.
Loki became quite excited after realizing their situation but Athena's next word put a cold shower on his excitement.
"This is just the start and it's already this dangerous. I don't think we can survive till the end to win any rewards," she remarked, her tone a bit solemn.
Sigh
"You're right. I was daydreaming too much. Let's just hope we survive and get the hell out of here." Loki clenched his fist with a resolute face.
Athena nodded, and they continued to discuss strategies. Despite Loki's concerns about her participation, Athena reassured him. He could only reluctantly agree, insisting she stay on the sidelines and let him handle the brunt of the battle.
Athena softly whispered 'ok' and stood up. Her heart warmed at Loki's concern, and she felt a renewed determination to face whatever lay ahead.
They approached the ancient gate and stood beside it. Both of them exchanged glances and nodded their head. Loki placed his hand on the gate's surface and slowly pushed it open.
Creak
A metallic sound echoed as the rusty door opened itself displaying the interior within.